1.The reduction of reproductive function of male zebrafish caused by high-fat diet:A molecular basis study
Zhenghong DU ; Fei MAO ; Xue ZHAO ; Shuo WANG ; Yongjun WAN ; Chengyu ZHANG ; Peng DUAN ; Dahu ZHANG
National Journal of Andrology 2025;31(11):963-971
Objective To investigate the effects and mechanisms of high-fat diet(HFD)-induced obesity on male ze-brafish reproductive function.Methods Adult male zebrafish were divided into normal diet(ND)group and HFD group.Growth and metabolic conditions were evaluated by measuring body weight,body length,BMI,organ index,and glucose/lipid lev-els.Reproductive capacity was assessed via sperm concentration,motility,fertilization rate,and testosterone levels.Testicular tissues from both of groups were subjected to transeriptomic sequencing(RNA-seq).And qRT-PCR was used to validate the expression of genes.Results Compared to male zebrafish in ND group,the ones in HFD group exhibited hepatic steatosis and glucose/lipid meta-bolic disorders(P<0.05).Testicular structural disorganization,along with reduced testosterone levels,decreased gonadosomatic in-dex,and impaired sperm concentration and motility occurred in HFD group(P<0.05).GO analysis revealed that differentially ex-pressed genes were enriched in spermatogenesis and ciliary system,while KEGG analysis highlighted metabolic related pathways(pu-rine metabolism,thyroid hormone synthesis,mTOR signaling)and cell adhesion molecules.Twenty key differentially expressed genes were validated by qRT-PCR,which confirmed the reliability of RNA-Seq results.Conclusion Impairment of reproductive function induced by HFD in zebrafish may be associated with three regulatory mechanisms including ciliary system,metabolic dysregulation,and aberrant cell adhesion molecule signaling.This study provides mechanistic insights and identifies potential therapeutic targets for clinical management of diet-associated infertility.
2.Multi-omics identification of microvascular endothelium-related genes in patients with diabetic organic erectile dysfunction
Lijuan WU ; Weizhuo WANG ; Kang CHEN ; Zheng TANG ; Kai FU ; Mingyan TANG ; Wanglei YANG
National Journal of Andrology 2025;31(11):972-978
Objective To integrate patient clinical information with single-cell sequencing analysis to identify key genes involved in organic erectile dysfunction(ED)in diabetic patients,and to further validate these findings using genome-wide association study(GWAS)data to pinpoint the genes associated with diabetic organic ED.Methods Single-cell RNA sequen-cing data were downloaded from the GSE206528 dataset,comprising samples from five patients including three individuals with-out ED or diabetes,and two patients diagnosed with diabetic ED.Data preprocessing,cell clustering,and annotation were per-formed using R,followed by extraction of microvascular endothelial cells for differential expression analysis.Enrichment analysis of the identified differentially expressed genes(DEGs)was conducted using the Hiplot platform.Expression quantitative trait loci(eQTL)single nucleotide polymorphisms(SNPs)corresponding to these DEGs were retrieved from the UK Biobank(UKB)da-tabase as exposures.ED(GWAS ID:ebi-a-GCST006956)was defined as the outcome variable.Mendelian randomization(MR)analysis was then performed to identify potential causal genes.Results Using the Seurat package,single-cell RNA se-quencing data from the five patients underwent quality control and integration.After cell type identification,a subset of microvas-cular endothelial cells was selected for differential expression analysis,resulting in the identification of 214 DEGs.Functional enrichment analysis revealed that these genes were significantly enriched in pathways related to diabetic complications,including the AGE-RAGE signaling pathway,TNF signaling pathway,and oxidative phosphorylation.Subsequently,MR analysis was per-formed on the 214 DEGs,using erectile dysfunction(ebi-a-GCST006956)as the outcome.Six genes were identified as potential causal genes including MYL9,NFIB,ENDOD1,DES,NRARP and HSPA1B.Conclusion These findings suggest that MYL9,NFIB,ENDOD1,DES,NRARP and HSPA1B may play a role in the progression of organic ED in diabetic patients.
3.Safety and efficacy of prostatic thermocautery vaporization for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia in elderly and high-risk patients
Bo KONG ; Hetong ZHOU ; Changyuan ZHAO ; Hongliang SUN ; Jingping GE
National Journal of Andrology 2025;31(11):999-1002
Objective To explore the effectiveness and safety of transurethral thermal steam ablation for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia(BPH)patients with high-grade and high-risk.Methods Clinical data of elderly BPH pa-tients with high-risk treated with transurethral water vapour thermal from February 2022 to January 2025 were retrospectively ana-lyzed.The operation time,intraoperative bleeding,the number of injections during surgery,postoperative indwelling urinary catheter time,and surgical complications were recorded.And the differences in the International Prostate Symptom Score(IPSS),Quality of Life Score(QOL),Maximum Urinary Flow Rate(Qmax),and Residual Volume of Urine(PVR)before and after 3 and 6 months of the operation were recorded respectively.Results All 30 cases were successfully completed with an operation time of(10.167±2.984)min,intraoperative bleeding of(1.600±1.133)mL,the number of injections during surgery(6.600±1.793).No case of transfusion occurred.And the mean postoperative indwelling urinary catheter time was(8.467±3.246)d.After 3 and 6 months of postoperative follow-up,the Qmax increased from the preoperative(3.463±2.503)mL/s to(10.177±1.625)mL/s and(11.747±1.888)mL/s.PVR decreased from preoperative(209.623±191.960)mL to(40.433±23.713)mL and(30.300±20.223)mL.IPSS score decreased from preoperative(29.533±4.216)to(15.067±3.183)and(12.100±3.546).And QOL score decreased from preoperative(5.033±0.718)to(2.600±0.814)and(2.367±0.850).There were significant differences in observational indexes before and after the operation(P<0.05).There was no case of postoperative urinary incontinence or secondary bleeding.Conclusion Transurethral water vapour thermal therapy is safe and effective for the treatment of elderly BPH patients with high-risk.
4.Transrectal cognitive fusion versus transperineal image-fusion prostate biopsy:A comparative study
Ning DONG ; Wenyi HUANG ; Jun HU ; Xiaoxu JIN ; Zhengcheng SHENG ; Jie DONG ; Song XU
National Journal of Andrology 2025;31(11):979-985
Objective To compare the detection rate and safety of transrectal cognitive fusion prostate biopsy and trans-perineal multiparametric MRI-transrectal ultrasound(mpMRI-TRUS)fusion-guided prostate biopsy.Methods The clinical data of 462 patients who underwent mpMRI at the Eastern Theater Command General Hospital from June 2021 to May 2025 were analyzed retrospectively.All patients had at least one suspicious lesion with a PI-RADS score ≥3 and subsequently underwent targeted prostate biopsy.The results of targeted biopsy combined with systematic biopsy were defined as the combined biopsy re-sults.The PCa detection rate,clinically significant PCa(csPCa)detection rate and incidence of complications were compared be-tween the two groups.Diagnostic performances of systematic,targeted and combined biopsies were also compared between the two approaches.Results In targeted biopsy,the transperineal group had significantly higher PCa and csPCa detection rates than those of the transrectal group(48.11%vs 38.19%,and 39.31%vs 29.17%,P<0.05).There was no significant difference between the two groups in PCa and csPCa detection rates for systematic or combined biopsy(P>0.05).The inci-dence rate of postoperative complications in the transperineal group was significantly lower than that of the transrectal group(14.78%vs 23.61%,P<0.05).The detection rate of combined approach was significantly higher than that in either systemat-ic or targeted biopsy alone(P<0.05).Conclusion Compared to the transrectal approach,transperineal mpMRI-TRUS image fusion-guided prostate biopsy demonstrates greater safety and higher accuracy in targeted biopsy.The combined biopsy strategy can effectively reduce the risk of missed diagnoses in patients with PCa.
5.Clinical correlation of P2X7R and NLRP3 inflammasomes in prostatic hyperplasia tissue
Xuanzhen ZHOU ; Chen HUANG ; Changying MEI ; Yingzhi CHEN ; Zixiang LIU ; Weiqi YIN ; Zejun YAN
National Journal of Andrology 2025;31(11):986-992
Objective The aim of this study is to detect the expression of purinergic 2X7 receptor(P2X7R)and the NLRP3 inflammasome in benign prostatic hyperplasia(BPH)tissues and to analyze the clinical correlations.Methods Twelve patients undergoing surgery for BPH were enrolled.Based on the presence or absence of inflammatory cell infiltration in HE-stained tissue sections,the patients were divided into inflammation group and non-inflammation group.Preoperative routine ex-aminations excluded surgical contraindications,and International Prostate Symptom Score(IPSS)questionnaires,urinary flow rate measurements,expressed prostatic secretions(EPS)analysis,and prostate-specific antigen(PSA)tests were conducted.Prostate tissues obtained during surgery were subjected to HE staining,immunofluorescence/Western blot to detect the expression of NLRP3,P2X7R,Caspase-1,Cleaved-Caspase-1,IL-1 β,and TNF-α,and immunofluorescence to assess lymphocyte infiltra-tion.SPSS 26.0 software was used to analyze correlations between the expression levels of NLRP3 and P2X7R in prostate tissues and indicators including Caspase-1,Cleaved-Caspase-1,IL-1 β,TNF-α,lymphocyte count,IPSS score,urinary flow rate,EPS,and PSA.Results In BPH tissues,the expression levels of NLRP3 and P2X7R were positively correlated(P<0.05).The ex-pression levels of NLRP3 and P2X7R were positively correlated with Caspase-1,Cleaved-Caspase-1,IL-1 β,TNF-α,and lym-phocyte count(P<0.05).NLRP3 and P2X7R expression levels were positively correlated with white blood cell count in EPS,but showed no correlation with IPSS score,lecithin body count in EPS,maximum urinary flow rate and PSA(P<0.05).Conclusion P2X7R and NLRP3 in prostate tissues exacerbate local inflammatory responses,which may be an important mecha-nism in BPH development.However,they are not correlated with IPSS score,lecithin body count in EPS,maximum urinary flow rate and PSA.
6.Comparison of Visual Prostate Symptom Score(Chinese version)and International Prostate Symptom Score in the evaluation of patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia
Xiaolei DUAN ; Hui YAO ; Xin XIANG ; Yiping ZHU ; Yijing WU ; Min YOU ; Siping CAO ; Yi ZHOU
National Journal of Andrology 2025;31(11):993-998
Objective The aim of this study is to examine the Chinese version of Visual Prostate Symptom Score(CVPSS)and the International Prostate Symptom Score(IPSS)in the assessment of lower urinary tract symptoms in BPH pa-tients.Methods By using convenient sampling,inpatients in the urology department of a tertiary grade A hospital in Shanghai were selected as the survey subjects from March 2023 to March 2024.The lower urinary tract symptoms of the patients were eval-uated using the self-designed general information questionnaire.And the CVPSS and IPSS with their urine flow rate were meas-ured.A comparative analysis was conducted from aspects such as internal consistency,correlation of item scores,completion time of the scale,and assistance rate.Results A total of 246 patients with BPH were recruited.The total score and life quality score were 13.93±3.55 and 4.23±1.02 by CVPSS.And the total score and life quality by IPSS was 18.33±7.55 and 4.36±1.02,respectively.The Cronbach's α coefficient were 0.761 and 0.787,respectively.The time taken on CVPSS was less than that on IPSS(P<0.01).And the rate of needing assistance was 23.58%for CVPSS,which was significantly lower than that(65.24%)for IPSS.Conclusion CVPSS is significantly correlated with the corresponding items and total scores of IPSS,as well as the quality of life.Moreover,it takes less time and can be used as a simple and effective self-assessment tool for lower urinary tract symptoms in elderly BPH patients with lower education levels.It reduces the burden of medical staffs as well.
7.Application of perioperative bundled nursing measures in robot assisted radical prostatectomy
Wei LIU ; Yuhao CHEN ; Jing LIU ; Song XU ; Xiaodong ZHAO ; Pan LIU
National Journal of Andrology 2025;31(11):1003-1008
Objective To evaluate the application effect of perioperative cluster nursing interventions in patients under-going robot-assisted radical prostatectomy.Methods A total of 122 prostate cancer patients who underwent robot-assisted sur-gery from January 2023 to December 2024 were divided into the control group(routine care,55 cases)and the observation group(cluster nursing,67 cases)according to the nursing methods.The psychological status,surgery-related indicators,postoperative recovery,incidence of perioperative complications,and patient satisfaction were compared between the two groups.Results The observation group demonstrated a statistically significant decrease in postoperative anxiety and depression scores compared to the control group(P=0.034,P=0.005).The observation group exhibited shorter operative time and less intraoperative blood loss,with both differences being statistically significant(P=0.016,P<0.001).In terms of postoperative recovery,the obser-vation group showed faster recovery of bowel function,shorter time for catheter insertion and postoperative hospital stay compared to the control group(P=0.010,P<0.001,P<0.001).In the observation group,the incidence of systemic postoperative in-fection was lower than that of the control group(4.5%vs 18.2%,P=0.015).The perioperative hypothermia rate in the obser-vation group was lower than that of the control group(38.8%vs 60.0%,P=0.020).There was no statistically significant difference in postoperative urinary fistula rate between the two groups(P=0.477).The observation group achieved an overall patient satisfaction rate of 98.51%,with higher satisfaction scores compared to the control group(P=0.008).Conclusion Perioperative cluster nursing measures yield favorable outcomes in patients undergoing robot-assisted radical prostatectomy.It can not only shorten the operation time,promote the postoperative recovery of patients,but also reduce the anxiety and depression of patients and complica-tions,and improve patient satisfaction.
8.Multiple testicular leydig cell tumors presenting with azoospermia:A case report and literature review
Qing LIU ; Zhisheng HU ; Yong YAO ; Kaijie XU ; Huiling WU
National Journal of Andrology 2025;31(11):1009-1013
Objective To investigate the diagnosis and treatment of multiple testicular Leydig cell tumors presenting with azoospermia.Methods Clinical data of a case of multiple testicular Leydig cell tumors presenting with azoospermia as well as re-lated article were reviewed.Results The patient visited the doctor due to"failure to conceive after 3 years of regular unprotect-ed sexual intercourse",and two consecutive semen analyses both indicated azoospermia.Testicular color Doppler ultrasound,en-hanced CT and pelvic MRI all suggested testicular space-occupying lesions.Preoperative evaluation suggested benign testicular tumors.Intraoperative frozen section pathology confirmed Leydig cell tumors.Microscopic testis-sparing tumor enucleation and microsurgical testicular sperm extraction(mTESE)were performed,with no sperm identified intraoperatively.The patient under-went successful tumor resection without complications.During the 12-month follow-up period,no tumor recurrence or metastasis was observed.Seminal volume increased compared to pre-operative levels,but azoospermia persisted.Conclusions Testicular Leydig cell tumor is a rare neoplasms originating from the gonadal stroma.Preoperative diagnosis is difficult.Radical orchiectomy is the primary treatment modality.However,testis-sparing tumor enucleation may be a safe and effective alternative for patients with bilateral testicular tumors.Tumor enucleation with testicular preservation is also a safe and effective choice for the patients with small-sized lesions or prepubertal status,whereas a long-term close follow-up is strictly implemented.
9.Effect of Xiongcan Yishen Formula on ferroptosis in testicular tissue of male rats with late-onset hypogonadism
Ajian PENG ; Haoyu WANG ; Chun YANG ; Wei LIU ; Gang NING ; Hui WU ; Xing ZHOU ; Shun ZENG
National Journal of Andrology 2025;31(11):1014-1020
Objective To explore the effect of Xiongcan Yishen Formula on ferroptosis in testicular tissue of male rats with late-onset hypogonadism(LOH).Methods A total of 48 male Sprague-Dawley rats aged 6 months were randomly divided into model group,low-dose and high-dose Xiongcan Yishen Formula groups and propionate testosterone group,with 12 rats in each group.An additional 6 male Sprague-Dawley rats aged 8 weeks were set as the normal group.Except for the normal group,the rats were intraperitoneally injected with Cyclophosphamide at a dose of 20 mg/(kg·d)for 5 consecutive days to establish the LOH model,while the normal group received an equal volume of physiological saline for 5 days.The normal group and model group were given equal volumes of distilled water by gavage,while the low-dose and high-dose Xiongcan Yishen Formula groups were administered concentrated decoction at doses of 10.4 g and 41.6 g/kg/d respectively,and the propionate testosterone group received intramuscular injections of 5.21 mg/kg/d propionate testosterone,all for 28 consecutive days.ELISA was used to detect serum testosterone levels in rats,HE staining and transmission electron microscopy were used to observe the gross morphology of testicular tissue and the ultrastructure of Leydig cells,and RT-qPCR and Western blotting were used to detect the expression of ferroptosis-related genes and proteins in testicular tissue.Results The LOH model rats exhibited pathological changes such as atrophy of seminiferous tubules,structural disorder,and reduced spermatocytes in the lumen,as well as ultrastructural changes in Leydig cells including altered nuclear morphology,increased mitochondrial density,and reduced cristae.After intervention with Xiongcan Yishen Formula and propionate testosterone,the pathological changes in testis and the ultrastructure of Leydig cells were improved.Compared with the normal group,serum testosterone levels in the model group were significantly decreased(P<0.05),the expression of ROS,ACSL4 mRNA and protein in testicular tissue was significantly increased,while the expression of FTH1,GPX4,and SLC7A11 mRNA and protein was significantly decreased(P<0.05).Compared with the model group,ser-um testosterone levels in the low-dose and high-dose Xiongcan Yishen Formula groups and the propionate testosterone group were significantly increased(P<0.05),and the expression of ROS,ACSL4 mRNA and protein was significantly decreased(P<0.05);the high-dose Xiongcan Yishen Formula group showed significantly increased expression of FTH1,GPX4,and SLC7A11 mRNA and protein(P<0.05).Conclusion Ferroptosis in testicular tissue is increased in LOH rats,and Xiongcan Yishen For-mula can elevate serum testosterone levels and improve pathological changes and ultrastructure in testicular tissue of LOH rats,possibly related to the inhibition of ferroptosis in testicular tissue of LOH rats.
10.Therapeutic advances of tadalafil in multi-organ systemic diseases beyond erectile dysfunction
Fan YAO ; Junjie WU ; Xuejun SHANG
National Journal of Andrology 2025;31(11):1021-1026
Phosphodiesterase type 5(PDE5)participates in the physiological functions of multiple organs by regulating the nitric oxide(NO)-cyclic guanosine monophosphate(cGMP)pathway.As a long-acting PDE5 inhibitor,tadalafil has been used clinically for over 20 years and is approved for the treatment of male erectile dysfunction and lower urinary tract symptoms associated with benign prostatic hyperplasia.Furthermore,tadalafil maintains cGMP levels by inhibiting PDE5,thereby activa-ting the downstream NO-cGMP signaling pathway to exert multiple effects,including relaxing smooth muscle,exerting antioxidant actions,regulating apoptosis,and modulating metabolism.Clinical evidence indicates that tadalafil shows promising therapeutic potential in multi-organ system diseases such as pulmonary arterial hypertension,heart failure,type 2 diabetes,cognitive impair-ment,female infertility,and fetal growth restriction.This article systematically reviews the action mechanisms and research pro-gress of tadalafil in treating diseases beyond erectile dysfunction,aiming to summarize its potential for cross-disease system clini-cal applications and provide references for optimizing treatment strategies for patients with chronic diseases.

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