Next generation of birth control is here
Two compounds in folk contraceptives that block the meeting of egg and sperm may make effective alternatives to today’s hormone-based contraceptives, which sometimes come with adverse side effects. PHOTO | FILE
What you need to know:
- One of the compounds is pristimerin from the plant Tripterygium wilfordii, also known as “thunder god vine.”
- The other compound, lupeol, is found in plants such as mango and dandelion root.
Two compounds in folk contraceptives that block the meeting of egg and sperm may make effective alternatives to today’s hormone-based contraceptives, which sometimes come with adverse side effects.
The compounds derived from plants could serve as an emergency contraceptive taken either before or after intercourse, or as a permanent contraceptive via a skin patch or vaginal ring, say researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.
The compounds block fertilsation in very low doses – about 10 times lower than levels of levonorgestrel in emergency contraceptives – thus they could be the next generation of non-toxic, non-hormonal emergency contraceptives nicknamed molecular condoms.
One of the compounds is pristimerin from the plant Tripterygium wilfordii, also known as “thunder god vine” whose leaves are used in traditional Chinese medicine to block fertility.
The other compound, lupeol, is found in plants such as mango and dandelion root. The findings were published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
