男女通用避孕藥即將問世

A contraceptive pill that could be taken by men as well as women could be on the horizon.
一種男女通用的避孕藥即將問世。

A breakthrough in the understanding of the biology of sperm could lead to a unisex version of the Pill, US government-funded scientists said.
由政府資助的美國科學家團隊近日宣佈，他們在精子生物學領域的研究獲得重大突破。以此爲基礎，他們可以開發出一種男女通用的避孕藥。

They have identified a protein in sperm that gives it the energy it needs to power towards the egg and break its way into it.
他們發現，精子中有一種蛋白質負責提供其遊向卵子並與之結合所需的能量。

As the researchers put it, the ABHD2 protein allows the tail to ‘crack like a whip’ and ‘power kick’ its way into the egg.
這種名爲“ABHD2”的蛋白質能使精子“快馬加鞭”，衝向卵子。

Therefore, blocking this protein could prevent the sperm from fertilising the egg.
因此，阻止此蛋白質的生成能夠避免卵子受精。

Dr Stuart Moss, of the National Institutes of Health, which funded the study, said: ‘Developing new compounds that block ABHD2 ultimately may yield new contraceptive methods that prevent sperm from research the egg.’
美國國立衛生研究院爲此項研究提供了資金。該研究院的斯圖爾特·莫斯博士表示：“發明一種能夠阻礙ABHD2蛋白質生成的新化合物能夠阻止精子與卵子的結合，這爲避孕提供了一種新方式。”

University of California, Berkeley researcher Melissa Miller added: ‘What is really cool is that we have an actual target for unisex contraceptive development.’
美國加州大學伯克利分校的研究者梅麗莎·米勒也指出：“對於研製男女通用避孕藥，我們終於有了一個明確的方向，這是非常棒的。”

Theoretically, such a pill could be taken by either sex, allowing men to take a greater share of the burden of contraception.
理論上看，這種避孕藥男女皆可服用。這意味着男性也可以承擔避孕義務。

Conversely, a drug that enhances the protein may help infertile couples have children of their own, the journal Science reports.
《科學》雜誌稱，反過來看，如果有藥物能夠促進ABHD2蛋白質的生成，就能幫助難以生育的夫婦擁有屬於自己的孩子。

While women have had access to oral contraceptives for more than half a century, the quest for a male pill has been thwarted by biology.
雖然半個多世紀以來，女性一直可以通過口服避孕藥避孕，但人類對於男性避孕藥的探索卻始終毫無進展。

Whereas a woman normally releases one egg per month, a healthy man makes 1,000 sperm with every heartbeat - and just one is needed for conception.
女性每月排出一枚卵子，而健康男性每秒會釋放1000個精子，這其中只有一個能與卵子結合。

There are also concerns over whether men would be willing to take a drug that could be perceived as affecting their masculinity - and whether women would trust them to take it.
不過，研究者還是有其他顧慮，比如男性是否願意服用，因爲這種藥物可能會被認爲影響男性特徵；也會有女性懷疑該避孕藥是否真的管用。

Professor Mike Wyllie, an expert in drug development and male sexual health, said: ‘This study has allowed understanding of the control of male fertility to leapfrog, or at least equal, our knowledge of the female reproductive system.
藥物開發與男性性健康專家邁克·懷利教授說：“通過這項研究，我們在控制男性生殖能力方面有了巨大進步；或者可以說，我們在這方面的研究成果終於得以與女性生殖系統的研究比肩。

‘This can only be good in terms of developing drugs for both conception and contraception.
“不管是針對避孕還是受孕，這項研究都是有益無害的。”

‘A contraceptive pill that could be taken by either partner would have a major positive impact on the relationship, where more often than not the only choice of medication must be taken by the female.’
“這種男女通用的避孕藥對融洽配偶雙方關係有着十分積極的影響，因爲目前的避孕方式通常是女方服用避孕藥。”

The news comes after US scientists announced they have made progress in developing a male contraceptive with no side effects.
在這一研究成果發佈前，還有美國科學家宣佈，他們在無副作用的男性避孕藥開發中已取得進展。

Professor Gunda Gerog, of the Minnesota University, has been making tiny adjustments to existing attempts at a male pill, and told the American Chemical Society's annual meeting she was very close.
美國明尼蘇達大學的剛達·格奧爾格教授一直在對男性避孕藥的現有成果進行微調，並於近日在美國化學學會的年會上宣佈她即將成功。

She said she was trying to make changes to the pill to make it more palatable for men.
她表示，她一直在嘗試改進這種避孕藥，使之更適合男性服用。

She said: 'It would have to be soluble so it could be taken by mouth. It would start working fairly quickly and it wouldn't diminish libido. It would be safe even if taken for decades.
她說：“這種避孕藥必須可溶性強，才能口服使用；它需要很快發揮效用，而且對性慾不能有影響；同時它要有安全保證，適合數十年長期服用。”

'And because some users would eventually want to have children, its impact on fertility would be reversible, with no lingering ill effects on sperm or embryos.'
“因爲有些服用者最後可能還是會想要孩子，所以該藥物的作用必須是可消除的，對精子或受精卵不能有任何遺留性的副作用。”

Her research was sparked by a study published last year, which identified an enzyme used by sperm to get inside the egg.
她的研究基於去年出版的另一項研究：精子中存在這樣一種酶，它能促進精子與卵子的結合。