Discovery of Sperm Energy Switch Opens Path to Male Birth Control

A newly identified molecular mechanism that powers sperm movement could enable nonhormonal male birth control and improve fertility treatments, researchers in the United States have found.

“Sperm metabolism is focused on generating energy for a single goal, fertilisation,” said Melanie Balbach, assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at Michigan State University.

Scientists found that the enzyme aldolase controls the energy surge that activates sperm, revealing a biological pathway that could be deliberately switched off to create temporary, nonhormonal male contraception or adjusted to enhance sperm function, opening new treatment possibilities for infertility affecting one in six people worldwide.