Frontiers in Reproduction and Fertility Control

This volume of 39 essays covering the major areas of research on the reproductive process and its control is part of a survey of research and funding sponsored by the Ford Foundation. The primary aim was to obtain assessments from investigators of where their fields stand. The essayists were asked to focus on possibilities for interfering with the reproductive process and to identify the problems most in need of intensive study and early solution. The book begins with essays on the physiology of the female reproductive system. Subjects reviewed include the gonadotropic hormones, human chorionic gonadotropin, prolactin, steroid hormone secretions, hormonal regulation of the ovarian follicle, the endocrinology of ovulation and corpus luteum formation, induction of ovulation, feedback regulation of reproductive cycles, gonadotropic secretion, brain neurotransmitters and the hypothalamic control of pituitary gonadotropin secretion, hypothalamic influences on pituitary functions in humans, reproductive immunology, the oviduct, biology of the uterus, and embryogenesis. The essays then move to the area of female contraception, including chapters on induced abortion, systemic contragestational agents, female sterilization, intrauterine contraception, postcoital contraception, injectible preparations, and the possible contributions of bioengineering to contraceptive development. The final area of concentration is the male reproductive system, with essays on the role of prostaglandins, hormonal control of gene expression in reproductive tissue, hormone-receptor interaction, the control of testicular function, spermatogenesis, Sertoli cells, Leydig cells, the blood-testis barrier, the structure of the spermatozoon, the metabolism of mammalian spermatozoa, mammalian accessory sex glands, the epididymus, semen, the capacitation of spermatozoon and fertilization in mammals, sperm motility, and the regulation of male infertility. The essay section concludes with an assessment of current clinical testing methodology. A unique feature of this book is a set of nineteen historical charts summarizing the course of advance in biological discoveries, methodology, and contraceptive possibilities in each of the major areas of reproductive research. Each chart stresses the major gaps that remain to be filled and the most fruitful avenues for future research. The policy recommendations of the Ford Foundation study, Reproduction and Human Welfare: A Challenge to Research,by Roy O. Greep, Marjorie A. Koblinsky, and Frederick S. Jaffe, was published by The MIT Press in 1976.Greep, Roy O. is the author of 'Frontiers in Reproduction and Fertility Control' with ISBN 9780262070683 and ISBN 0262070685.