Patch provides hope for men with erectile dysfunction

Researchers in China have used artificial tissue to restore erectile function in pigs, a promising development for repairing penile damage in humans.

"This is an area that has received little attention, yet the related need is huge," Xuetao Shi, an author of the study published in science journal Matte, said.

An estimated 50 percent of men between the ages of 40 and 70 experience some form of erectile dysfunction and about 5 percent suffer from Peyronie's disease.

Peyronie's disease, commonly caused by injury during sex, involves damage to the fibrous sheath of penile tissue known as the tunica albuginea that enables maintaining an erection.

Scar tissue called plaque can cause curved or painful erections or penis shortening and may require surgical treatment.

The Chinese researchers said other tissues from the body have been used to make patches to replace a damaged tunica albuginea, but they were sometimes rejected by the immune system.

Instead, they created an artificial tunica albuginea that mimics the elasticity of the natural tissue with a substance called hydrogel.

Hydrogels can be natural or synthetic and are being used for a growing number of biomedical applications, including contact lenses and tissue engineering.

For the study, the researchers tested the artificial tissue on Bama miniature pigs with injuries to the tunica albuginea.

The ATA patches and a saline injection restored erectile function "similar to that of normal penile tissue," they said, adding that the erection of the penis returned to normal after suturing the ATA at the injured part.

Shi, a researcher at the South China University of Technology in Guangzhou, said: "The results one month after the procedure showed that the ATA group achieved good, though not perfect, repair results."

The researchers said the findings "show promise for repairing penile injuries in humans" and can potentially be "extended to many other load-bearing" tissues.

"The next stage will be to consider the repair of the overall penile defect or the construction of an artificial penis from a holistic perspective," including techniques to repair heart and bladder tissues.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE