Human Sperm Produced In the Laboratory 368
duh P3rf3ss3r writes "The BBC is carrying a report from a team of researchers at Newcastle University who claim to have developed a the first 'artificial' human sperm from stem cells. The research, reported in the journal Stem Cells and Development, involved selecting meristematic germ cells from a human embryonic stem cell culture and inducing meiosis, thus producing a haploid gamete. The authors claim that the resulting sperm are fully formed, mature, human sperm cells but the announcement has been greeted with mixed reaction from colleagues who claim the procedure is ethically questionable and that the gametes produced are of inferior levels of maturation."
I SWEAR (Score:4, Funny)
So what? (Score:5, Funny)
I can't believe it's not butter! (Score:2, Funny)
For real, doesn't the fact that it was made in a lab mean it's NOT human?
Now how will Slashdotters get laid? (Score:2, Funny)
If sperm could easily be reproduced, I'm SURE the average Slashdotter's sex life will plummet.
Re:I SWEAR (Score:5, Funny)
I DIDNT DO IT!
This is Slashdot. That goes without saying.
Misread (Score:5, Funny)
That's not news (Score:2, Funny)
Human sperm has been produced in laboratories ever since they got Internet connection and you could download porn to your lab PC.
Oh, they mean artificial sperm. Nevermind then
It's about time... (Score:5, Funny)
This story is just too hard to swallow! (Score:5, Funny)
Thats Just Great... (Score:1, Funny)
Now I am even more redundant...
Re:Wow science is amazing (Score:5, Funny)
One step closer to not having hormonally imbalanced pregnant women...
My wife and I really wish the human reproductive cycle involved external incubation. I'd create a device to post to twitter whenever the baby kicks.
What's the problem? (Score:5, Funny)
"the procedure is ethically questionable and that the gametes produced are of inferior levels of maturation"
So... they're suitable for producing politicians, lawyers, and bad Slashdot comments?
Re:Well... (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Well... (Score:2, Funny)
As long as women don't find out about jar openers I think we're safe.
damaged sperm (Score:3, Funny)
I must be more careful to make sure all of my sperm is fresh. Perhaps there's some way I could extract the old sperm for disposal. Hmm, this will require some thinking.
Re:I SWEAR (Score:2, Funny)
I'm still trying to figure out how they knew I call my bathroom "the Lab"
Ok, let me be the first to say this... (Score:5, Funny)
Every sperm is sacred.
Re:This also from science today: (Score:2, Funny)
They're also working to develop a process that allows the transformation of gold into lead.
They're late - the economists already have that process perfected.
Re:So what? (Score:3, Funny)
And you almost generated humor there. If you had a lab maybe you could have actually been funny.
The big deal though is, I would assume actually several things
1. It's interesting enough that we can generate them in vitro. How sperm are made is better known than some other cell types, but now even the parts we don't know can be more easily studied, since you can watch it in a microscope easier. Changing conditions to determine what sperm need to develop is also going to be easier in a dish than it would to change conditions in a mouse testicle (I would assume, I've never tried.) For example, some big pharmecutical company could start a high-throughput screen of drugs on the process, they could identify some chemicals which would block the process and maybe make a male birth control pill. Maybe. There are many other applications for the technology too I'd assume.
2. We're close to curing some types of male sterility. If, say, you had testicular cancer or other... uh... trauma to your testicles that prevented you from generating your own sperm, this is a step toward that. You could take some of your cells (like skin cells), make them pluripotent (like embryonic stem cells), generate sperm from them, and then undergo IVF.
At least, a millionaire could. If he were willing to sort out the ethics of it for himself. Would be kind of stupid if you ask me, but so are a lot of things people spend their money on.
Re:So what? (Score:5, Funny)
I have a lab and he *HATES* it when I try to generate sperm.
Re:Well... (Score:4, Funny)
A man and a woman get into an elevator and press the button for the top floor. Halfway up, the elevator stops. The man picks up the emergency phone, and is told that they'll be stuck for at least an hour.
The woman looks at him slyly and says "want to make me feel like a woman?"
"Sure", the man says, immediately taking off his shirt.
"Iron this for me!"
Re:Mandatory... (Score:5, Funny)
speak for yourself, I don't mind if I she swallows.
Re:Well... (Score:5, Funny)
What do you mean? I think we are pretty well trained right now!
Re:Now how will Slashdotters get laid? (Score:2, Funny)
no problem... [slashdot.org]
Bad news for JAV actors (Score:4, Funny)
This will revolutionize the Japanese Adult Video industry! They won't need to hire 50 guys to make a bukkake video.
One upped (Score:5, Funny)
Huge waste of tax dollars (Score:5, Funny)
We give these scientists grant money to build labs to work on scientific discoveries. And they turn around and spend all day masturbating in the labs!
come on, people... (Score:4, Funny)
Every sperm is great.
Re:So what? (Score:4, Funny)
I wasn't sure where you were going until the end there. That would be entertaining. How long before we'd see the first attempts at defining a person as the result of a straight man's sperm fertilizing a straight female's egg in a marriage. Probably called "Defense of humanity" act.
Re:So what? (Score:5, Funny)
Wow. Incest++. That's a term that I had hoped would never be invented.
Re:So what? (Score:2, Funny)
Re:come on, people... (Score:3, Funny)
God gets quite irate!
Re:It's about time... (Score:2, Funny)
Finally, this will address the critical shortage of sperm we face today.
Alright, slashdotters! Now is your big chance - go get 'em.
...
Yes, Timmy, outside into the big blue room where there is no undo button, the gamma is too high and there's no wall hacking. Yes, there, the great unknown where your mother gets your Dew and Cheetos, and computer parts arrive in trucks that you've glimpsed from your front door.
... Fine, go back to your one-handed surfing. *sighs* If you want something done right, do it yourself... The things I do for you lot.
Re:So what? (Score:3, Funny)