Acute effects of hypercholesterolemic diet on erectile responses in rats.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to evaluate the acute effects of a high cholesterol diet (HCD) on erectile and endothelial functions in Sprague-Dawley rats.


METHODS
Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 2 groups as control and HCD groups. The control group was fed on a normal diet and the hypercholesterolemia group was fed a 1% cholesterol-enriched diet daily for 2 weeks. Total cholesterol levels were measured at the end of 2 weeks in both groups. To examine the effect of HCD on erectile function, electric cavernous nerve stimulation (CNS) at 20 Hz with a pulse duration of 1 ms for 1 min at 5 V was performed. During CNS, we measured intracavernous pressure (ICP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), detumescence time and area under the curve (AUC). To evaluate the endothelial responses, acetylcholine (Ach) was applied cumulatively (1 nM to 1 microM) to thoracic aorta tissues contracted with 60 mM KCl.


RESULTS
In the HCD group total cholesterol levels were significantly higher than in the control group (148.1 +/- 18.9 vs. 55.7 +/- 8.1 mg/dl, p = 0.002). The detumescence time was significantly decreased after HCD compared to the control diet (19.3 +/- 3.6 vs. 78.6 +/- 12.8 s, p < 0.001). The decreases in the HCD group were also significant in terms of ICP (53.4 +/- 4.5 vs. 35.6 +/- 5.5 mm Hg; p < 0.05), ICP/MAP (55.9 +/- 3.9 vs. 38.2 +/- 5.2%; p < 0.05) and AUC (1,404 +/- 197.1 vs. 2,250 +/- 253.7, p < 0.05) values. There were no significant changes in maximum relaxation responses of the thoracic aorta to Ach.


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggest that erectile functions were significantly damaged early in HCD rats. However, endothelial functions, evaluated in the thoracic aorta, were not affected simultaneously with erectile functions in rats fed a low concentration of HCD.
Demir
Omer
O
Department of Urology, School of Medicine, Izmir, Turkey. omer.demir @ deu.edu.tr
Murat
Nergis
N
Soner
Burak Cem
BC
Demir
Tevfik
T
Bal
Ersin
E
Can
Ertan
E
Gidener
Sedef
S
Esen
Ahmet Adil
AA
D000109:Acetylcholine / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000187:drug effects / Q000503:physiopathology; D002791:Cholesterol, Dietary; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000187:drug effects / Q000503:physiopathology; D007172:Erectile Dysfunction / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006937:Hypercholesterolemia / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D010410:Penile Erection; D010413:Penis / Q000294:innervation*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013997:Time Factors; D014664:Vasodilation / Q000187:drug effects; D014665:Vasodilator Agents / Q000494:pharmacology
D002791:Cholesterol, Dietary; D014665:Vasodilator Agents; D000109:Acetylcholine