Die Zhu1, Yan Deng1, Yueying Pan1, Zhihua Wang1, Xiao Yuan1, Xueling Guo1, Yu Wang1, Huiguo Liu2. 1. Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China. 2. Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China. Electronic address: hgliu@tjh.tjmu.edu.cn.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To conduct a study using a rodent model of chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH) to define whether endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) is involved in the CIH-induced apoptosis of penile tissue and erectile dysfunction (ED), and whether treatment with N-acetylcysteine (NAC) alleviates pathological variations in corpus cavernosa. Previous work has prompted that CIH acted as the major trigger linking obstructive sleep apnea syndrome and ED. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Five-month-old Sprague-Dawley male rats were subjected to 8 hours of intermittent hypoxia per day, with or without NAC for 5 weeks. Erectile function, apoptosis of penile tissue, levels of ERS-associated proapoptotic effectors, and nitric oxide (NO) and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity were determined. RESULTS: Treatment with NAC inhibited apoptosis of penile tissue, the expressions of ERS-related products: BIP, CHOP, caspase12, and Bax, NO, and endothelial NOS. Administration of NAC before CIH significantly improved the CIH-induced impaired erectile function. CONCLUSION: Our results show that pre-CIH NAC administration ameliorates the ED following CIH partly by alleviating CIH-induced ERS and cell apoptosis via regulating the expressions of BIP, CHOP, caspase12, and Bax.
OBJECTIVE: To conduct a study using a rodent model of chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH) to define whether endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) is involved in the CIH-induced apoptosis of penile tissue and erectile dysfunction (ED), and whether treatment with N-acetylcysteine (NAC) alleviates pathological variations in corpus cavernosa. Previous work has prompted that CIH acted as the major trigger linking obstructive sleep apnea syndrome and ED. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Five-month-old Sprague-Dawley male rats were subjected to 8 hours of intermittent hypoxia per day, with or without NAC for 5 weeks. Erectile function, apoptosis of penile tissue, levels of ERS-associated proapoptotic effectors, and nitric oxide (NO) and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity were determined. RESULTS: Treatment with NAC inhibited apoptosis of penile tissue, the expressions of ERS-related products: BIP, CHOP, caspase12, and Bax, NO, and endothelial NOS. Administration of NAC before CIH significantly improved the CIH-induced impaired erectile function. CONCLUSION: Our results show that pre-CIHNAC administration ameliorates the ED following CIH partly by alleviating CIH-induced ERS and cell apoptosis via regulating the expressions of BIP, CHOP, caspase12, and Bax.