The Role of Gut Microbiota in Male Erectile Dysfunction of Rats

作者：Zhunan Xu, Shangren Wang, Chun-xiang Liu, Jiaqi Kang, Yang Pan, Zhexin Zhang, Hang Zhou, Mingming Xu, Xia Li, H Y Wang, Shuai Niu, Li Liu, Daqing Sun, Xiaoqiang Liu · 发表于：The World Journal of Men s Health · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.5534/wjmh.230337 · 被引用次数：9 · 研究领域：Gut microbiota and health、Reproductive tract infections research、Sexual function and dysfunction studies

PURPOSE: Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a common male sexual dysfunction. Gut microbiota plays an important role in various diseases. To investigate the effects and mechanisms of intestinal flora dysregulation induced by high-fat diet (HFD) on erectile function. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Male Sprague-Dawley rats aged 8 weeks were randomly divided into the normal diet (ND) and HFD groups. After 24 weeks, a measurement of erectile function was performed. We performed 16S rRNA sequencing of stool samples. Then, we established fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) rat models by transplanting fecal microbiota from rats of ND group and HFD group to two new groups of rats respectively. After 24 weeks, erectile function of the rats was evaluated and 16S rRNA sequencing was performed, and serum samples were collected for the untargeted metabolomics detection. RESULTS: The erectile function of rats and the species diversity of intestinal microbiota in the HFD group was significantly lower, and the characteristics of the intestinal microbiota community structure were also significantly different between the two groups. The erectile function of rats in the HFD-FMT group was significantly lower than that of rats in the ND-FMT group. The characteristics of the intestinal microbiota community structure were significantly different. In the HFD-FMT group, 27 metabolites were significantly different and they were mainly involved in the several inflammation-related pathways. CONCLUSIONS: Intestinal...