Chinese scientists have created a synthetic tissue that allows pigs with penile injuries to get erections, in a breakthrough that could be of use to humans in future, according to a study published in the journal Matter.
"This is an area that has received little attention, but the need is great,” said Xuetao Shi, one of the authors of the study.
About five percent of men worldwide suffer from Peyronie’s disease which, experts say, may be caused in part by injuries during sex. The condition is characterised by the development of fibrosis in a membrane of the penis, which can cause pain and curvature of the penis.
One possible treatment is surgery with a transplant, but according to the researchers, current grafts (pig tissue or the patient’s own tissue) can be rejected by the immune system and cannot perfectly replace the structure of natural tissue.
Promising result from penile injuries in humans
The Chinese researchers therefore used a synthetic tissue, made from a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) hydrogel that mimics the properties of this membrane. They then tested this tissue on a kind of “miniature pig,” that had been injured at the membrane. By injecting a saline solution, the researchers were able to monitor the success of the operation.
“We were surprised by the results of the animal experiments, with the penis regaining a normal erection immediately after using the synthetic tissue,” said Xuetao Shi, a researcher at the South China University of Technology in Guangzhou.
The scientists also monitored the effect of the surgery after one month and, according to the study, the result is promising for the treatment of penile injuries in humans.
The process could be extended in the future to make other tissues, for example, for organs such as the heart or bladder.
