Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Lau, D.H.W
• Metcalfe, M.J
• Mumtaz, F.H
• Mikhailidis, D.P
• Thompson, C.S

Titel

Purinergic modulation of human corpus cavernosum relaxation

Ist Teil von

• International journal of andrology, 2009-04, Vol.32 (2), p.149-155

Ort / Verlag

Oxford, UK: Oxford, UK : Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Erscheinungsjahr

2009

Quelle

Access via Wiley Online Library

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• The activation of P2Y₆ receptors has been previously reported to cause vascular smooth muscle constriction and relaxation. The aim of our study was to determine the effect of P2Y₆ receptor subtype activation on human cavernosal function. Cavernosal tissue was obtained from 23 patients undergoing gender reassignment surgery. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) and Western blotting were used to determine the presence of P2Y₆ receptors in corpus cavernosal tissue. The effects of UDP (a selective P2Y₆ receptor agonist) before and after the addition of distilled water (control), cibacron blue 3GA (CB, a P2Y₆ receptor antagonist; 10⁻⁴ m) or N-nitro- l-arginine methyl esther ( l-NAME, a NO synthase inhibitor; 10⁻⁴ m) were assessed on phenylephrine (PE; 10⁻⁴ m) pre-contracted cavernosal strips using organ baths. Electrical field stimulation (EFS; 0.5-32 Hz) was performed in the absence and presence of CB to determine neuronal-mediated P2Y₆ receptor responses. IHC and Western blotting revealed the presence of P2Y₆ receptors on cavernosal sections. UDP at 10⁻⁴ m and 10⁻³ m induced a 5% and 16% relaxation of the PE-mediated response (both p < 0.0001), respectively, which was significantly blocked by CB (48% reduction of the UDP 10⁻³ m response, p < 0.002) but not affected by l-NAME. EFS-induced relaxations of pre-contraction strips were not significantly altered by CB. We have found the presence of P2Y₆ receptors in human cavernosal tissues, that when activated induce cavernosal smooth muscle cell relaxation via non-neuronal and non-nitric oxide dependent mechanism. Further investigation is needed to establish whether P2Y₆ receptors play a physiological role in penile erection.