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New insights into the role of endothelin-1 in radiation-associated impotence

International Journal of Impotence Research volume 13, pages 104–109 (2001)Cite this article

Abstract

The objectives of this work were to: (1) Determine if prostate and penile tissue levels of endothelin-1 (ET-1) are increased in a rat following pelvic irradiation. (2) Determine if an ETa receptor antagonist (BQ-123) potentiates erectile function in these irradiated animals. Rats were divided into three study groups: control, 1000 cGy and 2000 cGy. The experimental groups received a single dose of radiation to the pelvic region. A time course was established to measure the effects of irradiation on prostate and penile tissue levels of endothelin-1 (ET-1)-like immunoreactivity. The effect of intracavernous injection of BQ-123 (25 μg/30 μl) was evaluated by measuring intracavernous pressure (ICP) following cavernous nerve electrical field stimulation. In the 2000 cGy group, a significant rise in ET-1-like immunoreactivity tissue levels was observed at 20 days. A significant decrease in ICP was recorded in the 1000 and 2000 cGy irradiated rats compared to the control group. Only the 2000 cGy group had a significant improvement in erectile function following BQ-123 administration. A significant improvement was observed 20 min post-administration, lasted 90 min, and was back to pre-administered levels at 120 min. The conclusion made was that radiation-induced impotence in irradiated rats is associated with an increased production of ET-1. Preliminary results are suggestive that ETa receptor antagonist may be of use to reverse such radiation-induced impotence in these irradiated animals.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Urology, Department of Surgery, McGill University, Montreal, Québec, Canada

    SL Merlin, GB Brock, LR Begin, FFT Hiou Tim, AN Macramalla, RM Seyam & SB Dion

  2. Department of Pathology, McGill University, Montreal, Québec, Canada

    LR Begin

  3. Department of Radiation Oncology, McGill University, Montreal, Québec, Canada

    G Shenouda

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  1. SL Merlin
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  2. GB Brock
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  7. G Shenouda
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  8. SB Dion
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Merlin, S., Brock, G., Begin, L. et al. New insights into the role of endothelin-1 in radiation-associated impotence. Int J Impot Res 13, 104–109 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijir.3900652

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijir.3900652

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