Paul Turek, M.D., a physician in San Francisco specializing in men’s health and fertility, recently announced on his site that’s he’s received funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for research into developing an artificial human testicle – a “machine” that would actually make sperm, says Dr. Turek -- noting that this invention, if it succeeds, shouldn't be confused with a testicular implant.
Turek said in his announcement that there’s already been promising research in mice studies showing that sperm cells can be created from stem cells, and that he’ll conduct his own research using the NIH grant money with Dr. Constance John, of MandalMed, Inc., a San Francisco biotech company. The work funded by the grant will be both to make an artificial human testicle that works and to understand how sperm can be made from various types of stem cells.
You can keep up with Dr. Turek’s progress on his site, where he also has more information on a variety of topics relating to male infertility. For more recent news about advancements in creating sperm in the lab, read this article.
The American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) notes that in approximately 40 percent of couples dealing with infertility the male partner/spouse is the cause or a contributing cause to their infertility. For an overview of causes of male infertility from ASRM, check out this video.
