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Erectile dysfunction

Too much ROCK — erection block

Nature Reviews Urology volume 14, page 6 (2017)Cite this article

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A new study shows that mRNA expression of Rho kinase 2 (ROCK2), but not ROCK1, is upregulated in corpus cavernosum tissue (CCT) of men with erectile dysfunction (ED) who are refractory to phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitor treatment. Combined ROCK and PDE5 inhibition resulted in enhanced relaxation of precontracted ED CCT.

Men with diabetes or nerve injury after radical prostatectomy and ED often do not respond to PDE5 inhibitor treatment, possibly owing to a decreased supply of NO from cavernous nerves. “Increasing evidence in animal models that mimic these clinical situations shows an upregulation of ROCK, which makes smooth muscle cells hypercontractile and less prone to relax during sexual arousal,” explains Maarten Albersen, corresponding author of the new study. “However, whether these findings apply to human tissue has not previously been studied.”

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References

  1. Uvin, P. et al. Additive effects of the Rho Kinase Inhibitor Y-27632 and vardenafil on relaxation of corpus cavernosum tissue of patients with erectile dysfunction and clinical phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor failure. BJU Int. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bju.13691 (2016)

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  1. Clemens Thoma
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Sopko, N. A. et al. Understanding and targeting the Rho kinase pathway in erectile dysfunction. Nat. Rev. Urol. 11, 622–628 (2014)

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Thoma, C. Too much ROCK — erection block. Nat Rev Urol 14, 6 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrurol.2016.231

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