LONDON – A “male pill” has been developed by the scientists to be used asmale contraceptive pill.
Researchers have found an experimental oral contraceptive to be safe in menwith hormone responses consistent with effective contraception. Thefindings presented at the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting in Chicagoshowed that the new pill — called dimethandrolone undecanoate, or DMAU –appears to be safe when used daily for a month.
Like the pill for women, DMAU combines activity of an androgen (malehormone) like testosterone, and a progestin, and is taken once a day, saidthe study’s senior investigator, Stephanie Page, Professor of Medicine atthe University of Washington in Seattle.
“Many men say they would prefer a daily pill as a reversible contraceptive,rather than long-acting injections or topical gels, which are also indevelopment,” Page pointed out. Progress toward a male birth control pillhas been stymied because, according to Page, available oral forms oftestosterone may cause liver inflammation, and they clear the body tooquickly for once-daily dosing, thus requiring two doses a day.
However, DMAU contains undecanoate, a long-chain fatty acid, which Pagesaid slows this clearance. The study included 100 healthy men between ages18 and 50 years. The investigators tested three different doses of DMAU –100, 200, and 400 milligrams, or mg.
A total of 83 men completed the study, including giving blood samples forhormone and cholesterol testing on the first and last day of the study. Atthe highest dose of DMAU tested, 400 mg, participants showed “markedsuppression” of levels of their testosterone and two hormones required forsperm production.
The low levels, Page said, were consistent with effective malecontraception shown in longer-term studies. “Despite having low levels ofcirculating testosterone, very few subjects reported symptoms consistentwith testosterone deficiency or excess,” Page said.
All groups taking DMAU did have weight gain and decreases in HDL(high-density lipoprotein, or “good”) cholesterol, both of which Page saidwere mild. All participants passed safety tests, including markers of liverand kidney function, the study said. -Agencies