Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009 – Recent research released by the Wake Forest University’s Institute of Regenerative Medicine may signal a possible breakthrough in how human erectile dysfunction is treated. The institute’s director, Dr. Anthony Atala, stated that his team successfully used cell samples from rabbits with damaged penises to engineer new sexual organs for the animals. The artificial penises, when transplanted onto the rabbits, were efficacious in restoring sexual potency to the animals.

The research team obtained samples of smooth muscle and endothelial cells from the rabbits, and introduced them into an collagen matrix, which gave the cells a structural guideline for how to grow. The different types of cells were placed in proportions equal to those normally found in rabbits, and treated with growth factors to assist the tissue in forming properly. When the penises were grafted onto the rabbits, the tissue was accepted by the subjects. After the animals recovered from the graft, they were able to copulate with females and transmit sperm.

Dr. Atala states that while more research must be done, clinical applications in humans can start being planned, and that these results are promising for treatment of human erectile dysfunction.

Rabbit Studies May Assist In Treatment of Human Erectile Dysfunction