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Bilateral orchiectomy deteriorates the structure and function of seminal vesicles in a rat model

International Journal of Impotence Research (2023)Cite this article

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Abstract

The effects of hormone levels on ejaculation are known. In addition to thyroid hormone levels, testosterone levels are also associated with ejaculation, but no consensus has been reached on this issue. Thus, we investigated the effect of decreased testosterone levels due to bilateral orchiectomy on the chemical stimulation-induced ejaculation phases in rats. Twenty-one male Wistar rats were randomized into the orchiectomy, sham, and control groups, with seven rats in each group. Bilateral orchiectomy was performed. The ejaculation parameters were evaluated 5 days after the sham and bilateral orchiectomy operations and the waiting period in the control group. The seminal vesicle (SV) phasic contraction number and increase in basal pressure amplitude were significantly lower in the orchiectomy group (6.9 ± 3.3 and 0.6 ± 0.3 mmHg) than in the sham and control groups (11.2 ± 1.7 and 1.0 ± 0.4 mmHg, and 14.5 ± 6.6 and 1.1 ± 0.2 mmHg, respectively; p = 0.016 and p = 0.03, respectively). The interval between the SV contractions was significantly longer in the orchiectomy group (166.2 ± 104.3 s) than in the sham and control groups (76.0 ± 15.5 s and 63.1 ± 31.1 s, respectively; p = 0.014 (between groups), orchiectomy vs sham p = 0.040 and orchiectomy vs control p = 0.018). The SV weights of the rats were significantly lower in the orchiectomy group (0.14 ± 0.01 g) than in the sham and control groups (0.37 ± 0.05 g and 0.48 ± 0.03 g respectively; p < 0.0001 (between groups), orchiectomy vs sham p < 0.0001 and orchiectomy vs control p < 0.0001). The groups showed no significant differences in ejaculation time, SV basal pressure, SV maximum amplitude, and bulbospongiosus muscle contraction electromyographic activity. Our results partially clarified the relationship between decreased testosterone levels and ejaculation. Decreased testosterone levels caused statistically significant changes in SV functions and affected the ejaculation emission phase.

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Fig. 1: Seminal vesicle cannulization.
Fig. 2: Ejaculation and placement of a electrode for electromyographic measurement of bulbospongiosus muscles.
Fig. 3: Sample of seminal vesicle phasic contractions and bulbospongiosus electromyographic activity.
Fig. 4: Seminal Vesicles of Control&Sham&Orchiectomy groups.

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Data availability

The datasets generated and analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Funding

This study was funded by Dokuz Eylul University under Project No. 2018.KB.SAG.065.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Urology, Balikesir University Scholl of Medicine, Balikesir, Turkey

    Sakir Ongun

  2. Department of Urology, Dokuz Eylul University Scholl of Medicine, Izmir, Turkey

    Ege Sarikaya & Ahmet Adil Esen

  3. Department of Pharmacology, Dokuz Eylul University Scholl of Medicine, Izmir, Turkey

    Ayberk Sarac, Eda Sel & Nergiz Durmus

  4. Medical Pharmacology, University of Health Sciences Istanbul Kanuni Sultan Süleyman Education and Research Hospital, İstanbul, Turkey

    Ozge Guner

  5. Department of Urology, Life Urology Clinic, Izmir, Turkey

    Omer Demir

Authors
  1. Sakir Ongun
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Contributions

Conceptualization: SO, E Sarikaya, AS. Experiment execution: SO, E Sarikaya, E Sel, AS. Formal analysis: SO, AS, ND, OG. Methodology: SO, OD, AAE. Funding acquisition: ND, E Sel, OG. Writing–original draft: SO, ND, AS. Writing–review & editing: SO, OD, AAE.

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Correspondence to Sakir Ongun.

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Ongun, S., Sarikaya, E., Sarac, A. et al. Bilateral orchiectomy deteriorates the structure and function of seminal vesicles in a rat model. Int J Impot Res (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41443-023-00662-z

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