Eppin Pharma Receives $300,000 Grant for Male Contraception

DURHAM, N.C. - Dec. 9, 2019 - PRLog -- Male Contraceptive Initiative (MCI), a private non-profit foundation, announced four grants, including a grant to Eppin Pharma Inc to support research and development of a male contraceptive, raising MCI's total commitment to male contraception to over $3M USD since 2017.

Eppin Pharma will receive $300,000 to aid in their work developing a novel form of male contraception. Eppin Pharma's product, EP055, is a hormone-free method of contraception that is quickly moving to first-in-human studies. EP055 inhibits sperm motility that is crucial for fertility. The drug is intended to be administered as a pill to men on a daily or on-demand basis, providing protection from pregnancy.

With over $3 million invested in male contraceptive product development, MCI seeks to push male contraceptive research projects towards commercialization. There are a variety of male contraceptive research projects in the drug development pipeline; from early stage screening of drugs to studies that pave the way for early clinical trials, and consistent with their mission, MCI focuses their funding on promising projects within this pipeline like Eppin Pharma's EP055. MCI's mission is to facilitate research and development of male contraceptives for people around the world, and to build awareness among researchers, donors and the general public about the demand for and status of novel male contraceptive methods.

Through its funding efforts, MCI has championed this mission in manifold ways: investing in promising product development through this and other rounds of funding, supporting students and young professionals through fellowships and travel grants, and consistently advocating with the public and media for an increased method mix that includes male contraception.

"More and more men are expressing the desire to participate in contraception with their partners. We are confident that the time is right to emphatically get behind the talent and energy in the field in order to achieve a real vision for a shared contraceptive future," said MCI Executive Director Heather Vahdat.

Dr. Michael O'Rand, CEO and Co-Founder of Eppin added – "We are grateful for the support that MCI has given us and hopeful that this investment in our technology will advance the field of male non-hormonal contraception."

https://www.malecontraceptive.org/