Oral Testosterone Undecanoate Capsules combined with Qilin Pills for late-onset hypogonadism in males / 中华男科学杂志

Objective@#To investigate the clinical effects of oral Testosterone Undecanoate Capsules (TUC) combined with Qilin Pills (QLP) on late-onset hypogonadism (LOH) in men.@*METHODS@#Sixty-three LOH patients meeting the inclusion criteria were randomly divided into a control group (aged ［48.4 ± 6.2］ yr, n = 32) and an experimental group (aged ［47.2 ± 5.6］ yr, n = 31) to be treated with oral TUC (80 mg, qd) and TUC + QLP (6g, tid), respectively, both for 3 months. Comparisons were made between the two groups of patients in the IIEF-5 scores, total testosterone (TT) levels, and scores in the Aging Males' Symptoms (AMS) scale before and after treatment.@*RESULTS@#After treatment, the patients of the experimental group, as compared with the controls, showed a significantly increased IIEF-5 score (21.7 ± 5.8 vs 15.9 ± 4.7, P <0.05) and TT level (［16.7 ± 2.2］ vs ［13.1 ± 2.8］ nmol/L, P <0.05), but a decreased AMS score (20.7 ± 5.7 vs 31.3±6.5, P <0.05).@*CONCLUSIONS@#TUC combined with Qilin Pills has a better effect and a lower rate of adverse reactions than TUC used alone in the treatment of late-onset hypogonadism in males.

Expressions of phospho-Erk1/2 and phospho-Akt1 in the corpus cavernosum of aged rats / 中华男科学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>Nitric oxide (NO) is a key factor for penile erection. Its generation is mainly regulated by nitric oxide synthase (NOS), while both phospho-Erkl/2 (P-Erkl/2) and phospho-Aktl (P-Aktl) can affect the expression and activity of NOS and consequently penile erection. This experiment aimed to study the expressions of P-Erkl/2 and P-Aktl in the corpus cavernosum and their possible roles in erectile dysfunction in aged rats.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>We included 10 two-month-old male SD rats in Group A and another 10 eighteen-month-old ones in Group B, measured the levels of serum testosterone, and detected the expressions of P-Erkl/2 and P-Aktl in the corpus cavernosum by immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with Group A, Group B showed a significantly decreased level of serum testosterone (9.57 +/- 1.57 nmol/L vs 4.73 +/- 0.94 nmol/L, P < 0.05), and remarkably increased mRNA expressions of P-Erk1 and P-Erk2 and protein expression of P-Erkl/2 (0.47 +/- 0.09, 0.61 +/- 0.11 and 7.50 +/- 1.81 vs 0.95 +/- 0.06, 0.92 +/- 0.05 and 32.09 +/- 8.45, P < 0.05). But there were no significant differences in the mRNA and protein expressions of P-Akt1 between the two groups (0.97 +/- 0.04 and 11.67 +/- 5.61 vs 0.94 +/- 0.05 and 10.93 +/- 3.06, P > 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The overexpression of P-Erk1/2 in the corpus cavernous may be one of the important mechanisms of aging-related erectile dysfunction.</p>

Expressions of phospho-Erk1/2 and phospho-Akt1 in the corpus cavernosum of spontaneous hypertensive rats / 中华男科学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To understand the expressions of phosphor Erk1/2 (P-Erk1/2) and phosphor Akt1 (P-Akt1) in the corpus cavernosum of spontaneous hypertensive (SH) and normotensive rats, and to investigate their relationship with penile erectile function.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A series of electric stimuli were applied to the corpus cavernosum nerves of 8 SH rats, the changes of ICP/MAP observed continuously, and the expressions of P-Erk1/2 and P-Akt1 in the corpus cavernosum detected by immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR. Another 8 male WKY rats were taken as controls.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>ICP/MAP was significantly lower in the SH rats than in the controls (P < 0.01). The mRNA expressions of P-Erk1 and P-Erk2 and the protein expression of P-Erk1/2 were significantly increased in the SH group (0.81 +/- 0.05, 0.91 +/- 0.06 and 54.22 +/- 10.05), as compared with 0.42 +/- 0.04, 0.68 +/- 0.14 and 7.05 +/- 1.45 in the WKY rats (P < 0.05). The mRNA and protein levels of P-Akt exhibited no significant differences between the SH and control groups (0.90 +/- 0.05 and 11.17 +/- 2.21 versus 0.92 +/- 0.06 and 10.91 +/- 1.86, P > 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Erectile dysfunction in hypertension patients is associated with the overexpression of P-Erk1/2 in the cavernous tissue, but not obviously correlated with the expression of P-Akt1.</p>

Expressions of Erk1/2 and PKB/Akt in the corpus cavernosum of castrated rats / 中华男科学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the expressions of Erk1/2 and PKB/Akt in the corpus cavernosum of castrated rats and investigate their action mechanism in the development of erectile dysfunction (ED) after castration.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>We randomly divided 20 eight-week-old SD rats into Groups A (sham-operation) and B (castration), and, 4 weeks after the operation, determined the level of serum testosterone (T) and the expressions of P-Erk1/2 and P-PKB/Akt proteins (integrated optical density/area, IA/area) and those of Erk1/2 and PKB/Akt mRNA (Marker: GAPDH) in the corpus cavernosum of the rats by immunohistochemical staining and RT-PCR.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Four weeks after the operation, the serum T level was significantly decreased in Group B in comparison with A ([10.090 +/- 3. 026] nmol/L versus [1.339 +/- 0.642] nmol/L, P < 0.05). Erk1/2 and PKB/Akt expressed in the corpus cavernosum of both groups of rats. The expressions of Erk1 and Erk2 mRNA and P-Erk1/2 were significantly higher in Group B (0. 840 +/- 0.062, 0.876 +/- 0.141 and 0.142 +/- 0.020) than in A (0.479 +/- 0.090, 0.599 +/- 0.100 and 0.119 +/- 0.029) (P < 0.05). But no statistically significant differences were found in the expressions of PKB/Akt mRNA and P-PKB/Akt between Groups B (0.974 +/- 0.040 and 0.164 +/- 0.036) and A (0.942 +/- 0.054 and 0.162 +/- 0.025) (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Erk1/2 and PKB/Akt expressed in the penile tissues of both castrated and sham-operation rats. The increased expression of P-Erk1/2 in the corpus cavernosum may be involved in the development of ED in castrated rats.</p>