Dr. William J. Bremner, the Robert G. Petersdorf Professor and Chair of the Department of Medicine, will be director of the new center and a principal investigator. Other principal investigators are Drs. Robert E. Braun (UW Genome Sciences); Joseph A. Beavo, Jr., (UW Pharmacology); and Michael Griswold (Washington State University, Biochemistry and Biophysics). Co-investigators include Drs. Bradley D. Anawalt and John K. Amory (UW Medicine), Valerie Vasta (UW Pharmacology), and Derek McLean (WSU Biochemistry and Biophysics).

"Contraception for men has been a neglected area of research," Bremner said, "and there has been no new reversible-mode contraceptive since the invention of the condom hundreds of years ago. To prevent unwanted pregnancies and the resultant health risks and social consequences of abortion and unwanted children, new easily usable contraceptive techniques must be made available.

"Nearly one-third of contraception in the United States is now accomplished by male techniques (15 percent by vasectomy and 15 percent by condoms), demonstrating that men are willing to use contraceptives. We wish to provide new hormonal methods that are fully effective and may have additional health benefits--for example, in preventing prostate disease," he added.

The new center will be part of the Cooperative Contraceptive Research Centers Program (CCRCP), funded by the Contraception and Reproductive Health Branch of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) and designed to expedite development of new approaches to regulating fertility. The program supports a wide range of interactive research projects, both basic and applied, with the ultimate goal of developing knowledge that may lead to clinically useful products. Two other ce
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Contact: Craig Degginger
craigd@u.washington.edu
206-543-3620
University of Washington
30-Oct-2002