The long-awaited male pill could soon become a reality as Scottish scientists get to work on its development.
It is hoped men could start testing the revolutionary new contraception within the next five years if a suitable compound is found.
Speaking to BBC Scotland , Professor Christopher Barratt, head of the Reproductive Medicine Group at the University of Dundee , said: “Sperm move very quickly in humans.
“It’s the speed of Usain Bolt if you want to get an analogy. And what we’re trying to do is get chemicals to stop that type of movement.
“So stop them in the starting blocks, rather than letting them get to the 100m line.
Professor Barratt and his team have started work on the male pill after being give a grant of around $900,000 (£716,670) from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
The new drug, which will mimic male infertility, could potentially prevent millions of unwanted pregnancies across the world, if successful and Professor Barratt believes it is long overdue.
He added: “If you look back at the principles of male contraception then the last devlopment was in 1450BC, which is effectively the development of the condom.
“So there’s been absolutely nothing for men and that’s a key issue if we’re trying to deal with many of the issues that face the world.”
Dr Paul Andrews, director of operations at the National Phenotypic Screening Centre, hopes the fresh attempts will have more success than previous developments which had unwanted side effects and failed to attract the attention of pharmaceutical giants.
He said: “Big Pharma companies are not interested in this area, even though there’s potentially a large market. And so the Gates Foundation wanted to plug that gap.”
But Kristina Saunders, a sociologist at the University of Glasgow, says attitude will have to change before introduction such a major transformation in contraception.
She told the BBC: “I don’t think it would be as simple as here’s this pill or new contraceptive you can take.
“I think much deeper work needs to be done because these are really ingrained, gendered norms and ideas and expectations around, not just contraceptive use but reproduction more generally.
“So I think conversations need to be opened up within wider society between couples and health care professionals and with service providers.
“And starting with education from a young age to include men and young boys and everybody in discussions around contraceptive responsibility.”
