Turns out sperm can be an effective drug delivery tool

THE GROUP USED MEDICINESOAKED BULL SPERM TO SUCCESSFULLY FIGHT CANCEROUS TUMOURS

GENTLEMEN, YOU WON’T BE HUMAN MULES JUST YET.

For decades, scientists have been trying to find a cure for cancer, and although we’re still a way away from that happy ending, we may be closer to finding another way to combat the disease. Researchers at the Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research in Dresden, Germany, have found a potential alternative to chemotherapy — sperm. As unlikely as it may sound, the group used medicine-soaked bull sperm to successfully fight cancerous tumours. The team found that soaking the sperm in the drug allows the sperm to store the medication within themselves. When the sperm cells were turned into an experimental tumour, there was a 90% reduction in the cancer in just 72 hours.

The results are preliminary, with more work needed on dosage levels and, more importantly, how to control the movement of the sperm so they hit their target each time.