2024-02-08 19:26:42
Eduardo L. Guimaraes
NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 20:26
Researchers from Sweden’s Karolinska Institute have studied cells that fulfill an important, but previously unknown function in achieving an erection: fibroblasts. This connecting tissue in the erectile tissue of the penis helps achieve an erection. And the more erections a man has, the more fibroblasts, according to the study, which was published in the journal Science.
It was already known that hormones and the relaxation of blood vessels play a role in an erection, but the role of fibroblasts had not previously been investigated. In this mouse study, erections were induced in males by stimulating neurons in the brain. This led to an increase in the number of fibroblasts. And conversely, the number of fibroblasts decreased with a smaller number of erections.
The fibroblasts appear to play an important role in the supply of blood to the penis. They absorb the hormone norepinephrine, which causes the blood vessels to dilate. The more fibroblasts are present, the more effective this process is.
Penis fitness
The researchers conclude that it is important to remain sexually active to maintain erectile function: use it or lose it. They compare it to running: if you walk regularly, over time it becomes easier to breathe while you run.
“A wonderful study,” responds Marij Dinkelman-Smit, urologist-andrologist at Erasmus MC and not involved in the research. “Research into erectile dysfunction has always focused on the smooth muscle cells and the lining of the blood vessels. We knew that fibroblasts are common in the penis, but now we also understand more about their function.”
Sexologist Cobi Reisman also finds the research interesting. “The discovery of the role of fibroblasts is really new and the conclusion of the Swedish researchers is completely correct,” he says. “We always give that advice. Nature had already thought of that: night and morning erections are fitness for the penis.”
The study still needs to be repeated in humans, but lead researcher Christian Göritz points out that erections are achieved in a similar way in all mammals, except that male mice have a bone in their penis. The blood supply will therefore be even more important in humans than in mice, Göritz expects.
New Viagra
The researchers hope that their findings will eventually lead to a new treatment for erectile dysfunction. Dinkelman-Smit can understand that: “We now have Viagra, but it does not work for a third of men. And alternatives such as injections or even an erection prosthesis are invasive and drastic.”
Dinkelman-Smit is at a conference of the European Society for Sexual Medicine in Bari, Italy. “At these types of conferences, there is a great search for effective alternatives, but none have been found so far. This new research helps us understand where we could intervene.” But she doesn’t expect quick results: “That’s still a long way off.”
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