MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short non-coding RNAs consisting of approximately 19－23 nucleotides and involved in many pathological and physiological processes by regulating post-transcriptional gene expressions. ED is one of the common male sexual dysfunctions seriously affecting the patient's quality of life, for which there is currently a lack of effective treatments clinically. More and more experiments have demonstrated that miRNAs are involved in the pathological process of different types of ED. This article presents an overview of the progress in the studies of the pathogenic role of miRNAs in ED.
Erectile Dysfunction/genetics* ; Gene Expression ; Humans ; Male ; MicroRNAs/genetics* ; Quality of Life

Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a disease associated with a variety of factors such as age, psychological factors, physical conditions, and lifestyle, and it severely affects the patients quality of life. In the past, some non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) transcribed by genes but not translated into the protein were regarded as the "waste" in the process of gene expression. But in the recent years, ncRNAs have been found to play a crucial role in regulating gene expression and its products, which may affect penile erectile function. This review focuses on the recent progress in the studies of the relationship between ncRNAs and erectile dysfunction.
Erectile Dysfunction ; genetics ; Gene Expression ; Humans ; Male ; Quality of Life ; RNA, Untranslated ; physiology

Sleep has attracted extensive attention due to its significance in health. However, its association with erectile dysfunction (ED) is insufficiently investigated. To investigate the potential causal links between sleep traits (insomnia, sleep duration, and chronotype) and ED, this study was performed. The single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with insomnia, sleep duration, and chronotype were retrieved from previous genome-wide association studies (GWAS). A conventional two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) was used to estimate the causal links between sleep traits and ED. The summary statistics of ED were from individuals of European ancestry (6175 cases vs 217 630 controls). As shown by the random effect inverse-variance-weighting (IVW) estimator, genetically predicted insomnia was causally associated with a 1.15-fold risk of ED (95% confidence interval: 1.07-1.23, P < 0.001). Sleep duration and morningness were not causally associated with ED, as indicated by the IVW (all P > 0.05). These findings were consistent with the results of sensitivity analyses. Based on genetic data, this study provides causal evidence that genetically predicted insomnia increases the risk of ED, whereas sleep duration and chronotype do not.
Male ; Humans ; Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders/genetics* ; Genome-Wide Association Study ; Erectile Dysfunction/genetics* ; Sleep/genetics* ; Phenotype ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide

Growth factors have a universal bioactivity. Gene therapy is a new strategy in dealing with erectile dysfunction (ED). This paper presents an overview on the value of growth factors, particularly the vascular epithelial growth factor (VEGF) and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), in the treatment of ED.
Animals ; Erectile Dysfunction ; therapy ; Genetic Therapy ; Humans ; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I ; genetics ; Male ; Rats ; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A ; genetics

Vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) is a potent vasodilator and smooth muscle relaxant, and also fulfils several of the criteria for a neurotransmitter mediating penile erection. VIP donor and gene transfer of VIP are a potentially promising and physiologically relevant strategies for the treatment of erectile dysfunction.
Animals ; Cattle ; Dogs ; Erectile Dysfunction ; therapy ; Gene Transfer Techniques ; Humans ; Male ; Penile Erection ; physiology ; Rats ; Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide ; genetics ; physiology

Gene therapy is currently investigated in animal studies for treating erectile dysfunction (ED), and is affording an conspicuous therapeutic possibility for the treatment of ED, especially in L-arg-NO-cGMP pathway, ion channel, the protection of nerves and endothelia in erectile tissues. However there still exist so many problems for gene therapy to be effectively applied to the clinical treatment of ED. This review aims to examine the experimental efforts in recent years and tries to give a brief introduction to the new approaches in the field of ED researches.
Animals ; Cell Communication ; genetics ; Erectile Dysfunction ; therapy ; Genetic Therapy ; Ion Channels ; genetics ; Male ; Nerve Growth Factors ; genetics ; Rats ; Transfection ; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A ; genetics

RNA interference (RNAi), induced by double-strand RNA homologous to the silenced gene, is a process of post-transcriptional gene silencing in animals and plants. It plays an important role in fighting viral infection, inhibiting transposon activity and down-regulating the expression of the endogenous gene. As a focus of current biomedical research, RNAi has been applied to the studies of erectile dysfunction (ED), prostate cancer and spermatogenesis. This paper summarizes the mechanisms of RNAi, the latest progress in its researches and its application in andrology studies.
Andrology ; methods ; trends ; Biomedical Research ; methods ; trends ; Erectile Dysfunction ; genetics ; pathology ; Humans ; Male ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; genetics ; pathology ; RNA Interference ; Spermatogenesis ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) small interfering RNA (siRNA) on cyclic guanosine monophosphatethe (cGMP) in the smooth muscle cells of human corpus cavernosum, and to provide laboratory evidence for the application of the RNA interference (RNAi) technique for the treatment of erectile dysfunction.

METHODSThe recombinant adenovirus rAd5-shRNA-PDE5A3 expressing three pairs of specific shRNA was constructed successfully. The smooth muscle cells of human corpus cavernosum were divided into an experimental, a negative control and a blank control group, and transfected respectively with rAd5-shRNA-PDE5A3, adenovirus rAd5-mock and phosphate buffered saline. The concentration of cGMP was measured by radioimmunoassay at 24, 48 and 72 hours after transfection, and the effect of rAd5-shRNA-PDE5A3 was detected on the cGMP in the smooth muscle cells of the corpus cavernosum.

RESULTSThe cGMP level in the smooth muscle cells of the corpus cavernosum was significantly higher in the rAd5-shRNA-PDE5A3 group than in the rAd5-mock control and blank control groups (P < 0.05), most significantly at 72 hours after transfection.

CONCLUSIONThe rAd5-shRNA-PDE5A3 can obviously increase the cGMP level in the smooth muscle cells of human corpus cavernosum, and enhance the inhibition of the PDE5 gene.

Adenoviridae ; Cells, Cultured ; Cyclic GMP ; metabolism ; Cyclic Nucleotide Phosphodiesterases, Type 5 ; genetics ; Erectile Dysfunction ; genetics ; Genetic Vectors ; Humans ; Male ; Myocytes, Smooth Muscle ; metabolism ; Penis ; cytology ; RNA, Small Interfering

Erectile dysfunction (ED), as a common male disease, seriously affects the patients' sexual life quality. Most ED patients benefit from phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitors, but some refractory ED sufferers fail to respond to them. With the rapid development of molecular biology, the relevant molecular signaling pathways of penile erection and molecular pathogenesis of ED have been gradually clarified, and attempts have been made at a better management or a complete cure of ED with advanced molecular biological methods such as the gene therapy. This article presents an overview on the research progress in the molecular signaling pathways, molecular pathogenesis, and gene therapy of ED.
Biomedical Research ; Erectile Dysfunction ; genetics ; therapy ; Genetic Therapy ; Humans ; Male ; Penile Erection ; genetics ; Phosphodiesterase 5 Inhibitors ; therapeutic use ; Quality of Life ; Signal Transduction

OBJECTIVETo investigate the changes of gene expression profiles associated with erectile dysfunction in diabetic rats.

METHODSAffymetrix Gene Chip arrays from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) were used to examine the alterations in the gene expression profiles between streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats and littermate controls, and the data were analyzed with GeneSifter microarray analysis software.

RESULTSA total of 661 differentially expressed genes were identified, including 280 up-regulated and 381 down-regulated ones. Among the differentially expressed genes, kruppel-like factor 5 (klf5) was upregulated by 4.01 folds and ceruloplasmin(cp) by 5.14 folds; collagen, type XI, alpha1 was down-regulated by 5.84 folds and collagen, type I, alpha1 by 5.77 folds. The 661 differentially expressed genes involved such functional processes as glycoprotein biosynthesis, collagen fibril organization, angiogenesis in wound healing, triglyceride metabolism, cell proliferation and other important biological processes, and some pathways also involved such as fatty acid metabolism, neurodegenerative disorders, and ECM-receptor interactions.

CONCLUSIONSome genes such as klf5, cp, and collagen play important roles in the pathophysiology of diabetes-induced erectile dysfunction. Bioinformatic approaches offer a new means for identifying candidate genes and pathways relevant to the pathophysiology of diabetes-induced erectile dysfunction, highlighting also the potential complexity of this disorder.

Animals ; Computational Biology ; Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental ; complications ; genetics ; Erectile Dysfunction ; etiology ; genetics ; Gene Expression ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Male ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; Rats