Production of Sperm Outside the Human Body

Scientists at the Calistem research center in France have announced that they have succeeded in producing human sperm outside the body; a breakthrough that could be a turning point in treating infertility. According to Agence France-Presse, these scientists developed human sperm from immature spermatogonial stem cells, which exist in all men, including immature boys, and transformed them into mature spermatozoa. Previously, the artificial production of sperm from mice and monkeys had been conducted by scientists, and its mechanism had been studied, but this is the first time that the artificial production of human sperm outside the body has begun, which could be used to treat various diseases, especially to restore fertility in infertile men. Philippe Durand, head of the Calistem research group, states that the reason for starting this research was the declining fertility in men, which may be related to environmental factors. This research group believes that this new finding could restore the hope of fertility for 15,000 young cancer patients and 120,000 infertile men worldwide whose infertility issues are untreatable by any method. According to him, the main problem was testing sperm production inside the testes of men; therefore, it was decided to conduct these experiments in laboratory conditions for easier reproducibility. Scientists constructed a bioreactor from the sticky fluids of fungi or crustaceans to recreate the conditions inside the body. This finding also gives hope to young people who have undergone chemotherapy due to cancer, as a significant portion of them lose their ability to produce sperm after chemotherapy. The main challenge is reproducing the complex physiological growth process from an immature cell to sperm in laboratory conditions; a process that typically takes 72 days inside the human body. Philippe Durand states that artificial sperm undergo the same processes that occur in men's testes. Marie-Hélène Perrard from the French National Center for Scientific Research, who is the founder of the Calistem institute, says that artificial sperm can turn the hope of young cancer patients for fertility into reality, as this method can transform their immature cells into mature sperm. This report, based on research from the Mayo Clinic, states that 15% of couples face infertility issues, with this ratio being 30% for men and women separately.