Ian Katz
THE “orgasmatrons” of Woody Allen’s imagination may some day become a reality, thanks to United States scientists who claim to have found the chemical that produces the female sexual climax.
The researchers, from prestigious Rutgers University, say they have identified the so-called neurotransmitter that causes the sensation of orgasm in the brains of aroused laboratory mice.
The breakthrough came after scientists found that some women with severe spinal injuries could still have orgasms, which doctors had believed was impossible.
The team, led by Professor Barry Komisaruk, found the chemical that creates the sensation of orgasm could travel by an alternative route, along the vagus nerve, from the cervix to the neck.
Ultimately, researchers say, they may be able to produce a pill that simulates an orgasm – a prospect certain to delight sexually unsatisfied women, and stand-up comics.
But scientists warn that any “orgasm pill” is at least a decade away.
Barbara Whipple, a member of the Rutgers team and author of the seminal 1982 book, The G-Spot and Other Recent Discoveries about Human Sexualities, said: “We’re just into doing our basic research.”
Scientists had previously assumed that orgasms could be triggered only by stimuli transmitted along the spinal column but, of 16 women with spinal cord injuries who took part in the study, three were able to experience sexual arousal.
After identifying the “alternative” arousal route, the researchers experimented on mice to identify the chemical that created the sensation of orgasm in the brain. They concluded it was an unromantic-sounding compound called a vasoactive intestinal peptide.
Professor Komisaruk said he hoped his research might be exploited to produce painkillers and treatments for sexual dysfunction.