In light of the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade by the United States Supreme court, the space of innovative contraceptives within the biotech industry has become more important than ever. Companies innovating in this field are aiming to create solutions for the problems that surround current contraceptive methods, with new products aiming to improve the consistency and the effectiveness of birth control, while others aim to reduce the unwanted side-effects of current products.
In order to improve the effectiveness of long acting reversible contraceptives, Hera Health Solutions Inc. is developing the Eucontra implant. As an alternative to taking daily contraceptive pills, Eucontra is a biodegradable implant that will continuously deliver the needed dosage of medication for a span of up to 3 years. The Eucontra implant is about the size of a matchstick and only needs to be inserted once subcutaneously. Once inserted, the implant will fully degrade in the body over the course of its use. This removes the need for the implant to be removed, as is the common problem with current drug delivery implants, that are based off of non-biodegradable polymers, which cannot be broken down by the body.
Other innovators in the field of biotech contraceptives are aiming to improve the quality of birth control by creating alternatives to hormone-based birth control medications and by researching new potential compounds that will avoid the current side-effects of taking hormonal medications. Several innovators are developing non-hormonal rings that will block sperm from entering the cervical canal. This approach offers a potential alternative to taking contraceptives pills daily and removes the side-effects that would come with taking these pills. Companies are also in the process of researching possible alternative compounds to current ones used in contraceptive pills. The aim of this research is to develop a birth control pill formulation that will create fewer side-effects for users.
Overall, the current political landscape makes it vitally important that women have access to good quality contraceptives, and biotech innovators such as Hera Health Solutions Inc. are working to deliver innovations that will make contraception more accessible to everyone.
References:
“Next Innovation in Contraception: Pharmaceuticals.” Bayer, https://www.bayer.com/en/pharma/next-innovation-contraception.
Svoboda, Elizabeth. “Better Birth Control.” Nature News, Nature Publishing Group, 16 Dec.
2020, https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-03532-6.