1422: Injection of Muscle-Derived Cells at Site of Cavernous Nerve Injury Facilitates Recovery in a Rat Model for Post-Radical Prostatectomy Erectile Dysfunction
Year: 2004
Type: conference-abstract
Abstract: INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE:The cavernous nerve plays a crucial role in initiating and sustaining erections.Injury to this nerve during radical prostatectomy commonly results in postoperative erectile dysfunction.The goal of our experiments is to determine whether the injection of muscle-derived cells (MDC) at the site of nerve injury can promote cavernous nerve regeneration and consequently enhance the recovery of erectile function.METHODS: MDC were obtained from skeletal muscle via the preplate technique.Cavernous nerve transection was used to model radical prostatectomyinduced nerve injury.In one series of experiments, recovery of erectile responses was assessed via intracavernous pressure (ICP) measurements at 2 weeks following bilateral cavernous nerve transection.Experimental groups included a control group (C, n =6), a bilateral cavernous nerve transected group (T, n =6), and a bilateral cavernous nerve transected group with MDC injections (3x 10 5 cells/each side) at the site of injury (M, n = 6).A tube connected to a pressure transducer was inserted into the cavernosum, and ICP was measured during electrical stimulation (20 Hz, 0.5 ms, 10 V) of the pelvic nerve.In a separate series of experiments, electrophysiological recordings of the cavernous nerve compound action potential (CAP) were used to analyze nerve recovery at 2 weeks following nerve transection.Experimental groups for these experiments were the same as described above.To record the CAP, a stimulating electrode (0.07 ms pulses, 0.6 Hz, 12 V) was placed on the pelvic nerve, and a bipolar recording electrode was placed on the cavernous nerve distal to the injury site.RESULTS: The mean maximal ICP of group M (52.5 + 9.5 cmH20) was greater than group T (25.4 + 6.6 cmH,O) (p< 0.05) but less than group C (115.0 + 11.2 cmH20) (p<0.05).Mean maximal CAP amplitude was also larger for group M (4.4 + 0.6 V) than for group T (2.4 + 0.3 V), but was likewise smaller than for group C (4.8 + 0.1 V).A small sample size precluded statistical comparison of CAP data between groups.CONCLUSIONS: Injection of MDC facilitates the recovery of erectile function in cavernous nerve-injured rats compared to injury-only and vehicleinjected groups.Preliminary electrophysiological recordings suggest that enhanced nerve regeneration may underlie the recovery of erectile responses.These results indicate that MDC may provide a potential therapy for accelerating the restoration of erectile function following radical prostatectomy.
Source: The Journal of Urology
Language: English
Subfield: Psychiatry and Mental health
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2794323864