Curcumin slow-release membrane promotes erectile function and penile rehabilitation in a rat model of cavernous nerve injury.

Male erectile dysfunction (ED) caused by cavernous nerve injury is a common complication of pelvic surgery, radiotherapy, transurethral surgery or other operations. However, clinical treatment for iatrogenic or traumatic male ED is difficult and not satisfactory. Many studies have shown that curcumin can promote the repair and regeneration of peripheral nerves; however, whether curcumin can rescue cavernous nerve injury is unknown, and the poor bioavailability of curcumin limits its application in vivo. Hence, the study was conducted. A curved slow-release membrane was produced, and the properties were examined. In addition, the effects of the curcumin slow-release membrane on cavernous nerve-injured SD rats were studied. We found that polylactic acid-glycolic acid-polyethylene glycol (PLGA-PEG) can be used as a good carrier material for curcumin, and curcumin-loaded PLGA-PEG membranes can effectively rescue the cavernous nerve in SD rats, restore the continuity of the cavernous nerve, and increase the expression of nNOS mRNA and proteins in penile tissue, which can improve the penile erectile function of injured SD rats, reduce the degree of penile tissue fibrosis, and effectively promote penis rehabilitation. The curcumin slow-release membrane is proposed to be a new therapeutic approach for penile rehabilitation of cavernous nerve injury.

Preliminary study on the biological characters of Ornidazole Slow-Release Membrane / 中国海洋药物

Objective To evaluate the biocompatibility and antibacterial activities of the Ornidazole Slow-Release Membrane.Methods 1.The lower lips of 12 rats were sewed into 12 pockets and the pockets were immited with extracting solution of the ornidazole membrane, formaldehyde and normal saline respectively once per day.The specimens were examined histologically 7 days later.2.The dorsal muscles of 16 rats were implanted with the membranes or silk threads,and examined histologically 1 week and 2,4,6 weeks later respectively.3. The antibacterial activity against Streptococcus mutans and Fusobacterium nucleatum was observed on solid culture medium in vitro.Results The animal experiments showed the membranes were not irritative to the oral mucosa.It was found that the tissue reaction of the membranes was similar to that of the silk threads after implanted into dorsal muscles and the membranes had been degraded in the second week.And the membranes had effective antibacterial action against Streptococcus mutans and Fusobacterium nucleatum.Conclusion The Ornidazole Slow-Release Membrane possesses favorable biocompatibility and antibacterial activities.