infertility
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Scientists get closer to replicating human sperm
Scientists have taken an important step forward in recreating the way the human body makes sperm, which could one day mean creating artificial sperm and eggs for infertility treatment. The researchers, from the University of Cambridge's Gurdon Institute, are thought to be the first team to have reached the "halfway point" -- a significant milestone -- on the path between stem cells and immature sperm.
Semen, centrifuges and a personal journey in male fertility
In August 2012, I came into a neon-pink shot glass. Nine months later, a baby was born. I'd never planned on having a child of my own -- and to be clear, I still don't -- but when two of my best friends started looking for a donor, I jumped on the opportunity. For those of us who can't have children with our partners through good old-fashioned sex, the path to pregnancy is complicated and expensive. After careful consideration, my friends decided on what's commonly referred to as the Turkey Baster Method. I would masturbate into a sterile collection cup and pass the resulting semen to my friend who would draw it into a syringe and deliver it to his wife. She would then plunge it into her vagina.
Scientists take a step towards curing infertility with stem cells
Stem cells are basically like biological alchemy. You can turn them in to almost anything, including it seems sperm or eggs. Researchers working jointly in the UK and Israel have figured out how to create precursor cells for gametes, you know the bits that combine during fertilization to create a tiny human. There's still a long way to go before viable eggs or sperm can be created in a petri dish, but this is a major first step. The hope here is that one day couples where either partner (or both) suffer from infertility could have a child. The process would obviously still be involved and difficult for the couple, much like in vitro.
