It’s no secret that male infertility is taking as much prominence as is female infertility in the scientific race to find solutions for fertility problems in couples.
At the Reproductive Science Institute (RSI), conveniently located outside Philadelphia, we strive to stay on top of the latest developments to help those with male infertility conditions. Recently, there’s been a lot of press from an Asian study about the possibility of creating viable “test tube” sperm in a laboratory setting.
Fertility researchers in Japan used mice for their trials and were able to replicate sperm artificially within a ten-week period using stem cells from the mice. The sperm, once verified as viable, were implanted into mice testes, later removed, and then used to fertilize ova.
Mouse babies created from this sperm were not only conceived, but were born healthy. Those babies eventually grew to adulthood and reproduced as well, suggesting that the artificial sperm had no negative repercussions on the fertility of those babies who were conceived from them.
The breakthrough is a fascinating peek into the opportunities that fertility specialists have when it comes to combating male infertility. However, it’s important to note that while this research has caused some small earthquakes, it hasn’t produced any tsunamis in terms of watershed fertility treatment methodologies.
As this story develops, RSI will, of course, keep you in the loop. Until then, if you or your partner are/is suffering from male infertility symptoms, we urge you to contact us for an initial consultation.