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Erectile dysfunction occurs following substantia nigra lesions in the rat

International Journal of Impotence Research volume 13, pages 255–260 (2001)Cite this article

Abstract

Erectile function was assessed 6 weeks following uni- and bilateral injections of 6-hydroxydopamine in the substantia nigra nucleus of the brain. Behavioral apomorphine-induced penile erections were reduced (5/8) and increased (3/8) in uni- and bilateral lesioned animals. Intracavernous pressures, following electrical stimulation of the cavernous nerve, decreased in lesioned animals. Lesions of the substantia nigra were confirmed by histology. Concentration of dopamine and its metabolites were decreased in the striatum of substantia nigra lesioned rats. Lesions of the substantia nigra are therefore associated with erectile dysfunction in rats and may serve as a model to study erectile dysfunction in Parkinson's disease.

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Acknowledgements

This research project was supported by the Jewish General Foundation of the Montreal Jewish General Hospital. We greatly acknowledge Mme Jeanne Lavoie for histological preparations. We also wish to thank Dr Jane Montgomery and Ms Line Ste-Marie from the University of Montreal Hospital Research Center for the analysis of DA and metabolites by HPLC.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, Lady Davis Institute of the Jewish General Hospital, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

    AR Zahran, N Simmerman, S Carrier & P Vachon

  2. Department of Metabolism and Animal Pharmacokinetics, MDS Pharma Services, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

    P Vachon

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  1. AR Zahran
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  2. N Simmerman
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  3. S Carrier
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  4. P Vachon
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Zahran, A., Simmerman, N., Carrier, S. et al. Erectile dysfunction occurs following substantia nigra lesions in the rat. Int J Impot Res 13, 255–260 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijir.3900712

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