Within this program area, the goal of the CRH Branch is to promote contraceptive research and development for preventing or reducing unintended pregnancies by:
· Developing new male and female contraceptive methods that employ hormonal and non-hormonal agents
· Developing new hormonal methods for emergency contraception
· Supporting contraceptive research and development that may lead to new methods for inhibiting ovulation, fertilization, or spermatogenesis
· Conducting experimental studies in animals and clinical trials in humans to determine optimal formulations and dosages of contraceptive agents

Contraceptive research and development is critical for providing safer, more efficacious methods of preventing unintended pregnancies, especially in light of the continued growth of the global population.  Although a range of contraceptive methods is currently available, the proportion of unintended pregnancies in the United States still approximates 50 percent of all pregnancies.  The CRH Branch recognizes that part of this problem results from failure to use available methods because of an individual’s dissatisfaction with those methods, which illustrates the critical need for contraceptive methods that enhance use by meeting the diverse needs of women and men throughout their reproductive lives.  Having a variety of contraceptive methods available for widespread use that recognize and meet the needs of individuals with different ethnicities, cultures, and religious values, but adapt as the needs of individuals change over time would be ideal, and it is to this optimal situation that the Branch strives.

The Branch uses a variety of funding mechanisms to promote contraceptive research and development.  New ideas are generated by the Cooperative Contraceptive Research Centers Program, by staff generation of research contracts for new contraceptive leads, through conferences, and by investigator-initiated grants.  Selected new contraceptive leads move forward with assistance from one of the Branch’s support contractors.  For instance, the Chemical Synthesis and Peptide Synthesis Facilities prepare compounds for the Branch and for other extramural scientists involved in contraceptive research.  The Biological Testing Facility studies biological activity, pharmacology, and toxicology of compounds of interest.  The Contraceptive Clinical Trials Network conducts Phase I through Phase III trials of promising contraceptives developed from Branch-sponsored projects and from other investigators.

The Branch continues its efforts to develop new contraceptive methods for women.  In addition, when the NICHD established strategic goals for Reproductive Health in the 21st Century in 2000, researchers concluded that a successful reproductive health agenda must include development of effective, safe, and acceptable contraceptive methods for men beyond those presently available (e.g., periodic abstinence, withdrawal, condoms, or vasectomy).  Effective new methods for male fertility regulation would not only benefit men, but would also be a major contribution to women’s health.  In order to implement this strategic goal, the CRH Branch, in collaboration with the other two components of the Center for Population Research, initiated and restructured research programs to encourage development of male contraceptives using a combination of basic, applied, clinical, and behavioral research.

The Department has supported contraceptive research and development activities since 1968, when the Secretary of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare established the Center for Population Research at the NICHD, with the goal of developing new contraceptives using contracts and grants.  Further support came in 1993, when congress passed legislation directing the NICHD to establish three extramural centers devoted to contraceptive research and development.  The 1996 Amendment to the Public Health Service Act (Title X) reemphasized this goal.  Congress continues to support the efforts of the CRH Branch in its appropriations and by highlighting contraceptive research and development as important to the NICHD’s mission.