The study published in the “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences” explains how researchers from the Institute of Regenerative Medicine at the Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in North Carolina were able to reconstruct the penis of rabbits and give them full sexual and reproductive function.
The Wake Forest research team is known in tissue engineering for being able to successfully develop human bladders, which have been implanted in both children and adults, in the laboratory.
They have also conducted a previous study about the penile erectile tissue of rabbits, but were only able to restore 50 percent of the organ’s function.
Replacing penile tissue
For this latest study, Dr. Anthony Atala and his team obtained samples of smooth muscle and endothelial cells from the penises of the rabbits which were to be given the implants.
These cells were then grown in the laboratory and then injected into a three-dimensional scaffolds also extracted from the rabbits’ erectile tissue. The injection of the cells was done over two days, a process believed to be a reason for the scaffolds’ ability to hold six times more smooth muscle cells.
The engineered penile tissue was implanted into the rabbits and upon testing of the penis’ function, researchers were able to observe that both the blood flow and vessel pressure inside the engineered tissues were normal.
Researchers also observed that upon recovering from the surgery, the rabbits showed an interest in copulating when left alone with a female. After successful intercourse, it was also noted that eight out of twelve vaginal swabs had sperm and four out of twelve female rabbits got pregnant.
Future benefit
The research shows promise in the science of tissue engineering and for males who have damaged penises, however, it will take more studies before this could be done for humans.
Dr. Atala stated, "Further studies are required, of course, but our results are encouraging and suggest that the technology has considerable potential for patients who need penile reconstruction.
"Our hope is that patients with congenital abnormalities, penile cancer, traumatic injury and some cases of erectile dysfunction will benefit from this technology in the future."
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