Erectile Tissue Engineering For Medically Refractory Erectile Dysfunction

Main Category: Erectile Dysfunction / Premature Ejaculation
Also Included In: Urology / Nephrology
Article Date: 05 Nov 2006 - 0:00 PST

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UroToday.com - Presentations such as extensive penile fibrosis arise in the management of erectile dysfunction in which the loss of erectile tissue function or structure is so severe that medical therapy will be ineffective.

In this study, the investigators replaced the surgically removed corporal bodies of rabbit penises with a collagenous scaffold seeded with cultured and grown cellular components of the penis.

Animals impressively demonstrated functional copulatory ability as soon as 1 month after their reconstructions. This study supports the feasibility of erectile tissue engineering for medically refractory erectile dysfunction.

Editor's note: This laboratory is the leading group in the world in the area of tissue engineering. In this study the investigators grow penile tissue in cell culture and subsequently transplant that tissue into the penis of an animal that has had corporal smooth muscle completely stripped out. There were no neurologic or hemodynamic studies to compare pre and post implant responses. In demonstrating post operative copulation the investigators are presuming normal erectile function. The hemodynamics of erection are well understood; the next step in this line of research would be to demonstrate that the penis of these animals responds efficiently to neural stimuli with increases in intracorporeal pressure.

AUA 2006 - Abstract 1323

Reviewed by UroToday.com Contributing Editor Arthur Burnett

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