Team 16

Bio.TECH: EMIT - Male Contraceptive


Team Members:

Candace Pless

Gabriella Estrada

Keiry Rodriguez

Fabiha Firoz

Anwar Gadhi


Team Mentors:

Dr. Jessica Weaver - Arizona State University

Dr. James Smith - University of California San Francisco

Dr. Russell Hayden - Shady Grove Fertility

Dr. Polina Lishko - Berkeley

YouTube Link:
View the video link below before joining the zoom meeting

Zoom Link:
https://asu.zoom.us/j/81168992242



Abstract

EMIT, male contraceptive that is designed to be a reversible non-hormonal injected hydrogel into the male testes to deactivate or block sperm motility prior to ejaculation, therefore, being reabsorbed into the body. A urologist injects hydrogel with ultrasound monitoring, in the rete testes located between the testicle and epididymis targeting the tubules where sperm travels through. Producing a hydrogel that not only is biocompatible with biomaterials and inhibitors that will naturally degrade, but also has the capability to control the drug release. This method would be a minimally invasive procedure to reduce unplanned pregnancies for months at a time. As a result this will create an outpatient reversible male contraceptive minimally invasive procedure that will be covered by insurance and provide an alternative to male birth controls. Currently, on the market there are only two available male contraceptives to help prevent unwanted pregnancies: (1) A reversible contraceptive, condoms which has a 93% effectiveness but a 16% failure rate; (2) vasectomies, a “male sterilization” which has a 99.85% effectiveness but is not always reversible. Another contraceptive attempt was created in a pill form that incorporated testosterone but created adverse side effects, resulting in it being recalled from the market. EMIT can be achieved through persistent research, lab prototyping, manufacturing with common biomaterials and inhibitor components, and an ultrasound procedure in the testes. This could potentially be an innovative solution for single males and couples that choose a male contraceptive. Doing so will improve the quality of life of those who desire to not get pregnant and balance the responsibility of birth control ownership. Worldwide, a need for alternative contraception has been estimated to reach 2.563 billion men between the ages of 15 and 64 years of age. EMIT has the potential to provide these men and women security and economical reassurance.