Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) Growth Factor Concentration Varies in Men with Erectile Dysfunction

Abstract

Background Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) is a novel therapy rich in growth factors and cytokines used to target the underlying causes of erectile dysfunction (ED). It is not known, however, if the composition of growth factors in PRP varies between men. Aim To evaluate PRP growth factor variability among men with ED. Methods Whole blood was collected from 8 participants with at least a 6-month history of ED. Seven men with Peyronie’s disease and 1 healthy male (without sexual dysfunction) were used as the control group. PRP was extracted from whole blood using the Arthrex Angel system. A Human Growth Factor Antibody Array for 41 proteins was performed using 3 participants and the healthy control. Using all 16 samples, quantitative detection of factors from the array that were decreased by 1.5-fold were validated with western blot. Outcomes From the growth factor array, 2 growth factors—granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor and transforming growth factor-β were identified as having a 1.5-fold decrease between the participants and the control. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was selected because androgens can upregulate VEGF production. Other than a weak negative correlation between VEGF expression and age, we found no correlation between growth factor expression for granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor or transforming growth factor-β and age, body mass index, or comorbidities. Clinical Translation PRP growth factor concentration appears to vary among men with ED. PRP treatment for ED may need to be personalized for patients, depending on individual growth factor concentration. Strengths and Limitations This study demonstrates the variability in PRP growth factors among men with ED. This is an important finding in the investigation of PRP as a restorative treatment option for men with ED. Our study, however, was limited by a small sample size. Conclusion PRP growth factors vary among men with ED.

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“…Restorative therapies for erectile dysfunction have attracted significant interest and research attention within men’s health with multiple ongoing clinical trials and many unanswered questions [ 16 , 17 ]. A high prevalence of poor-quality information online poses a particular challenge to today’s urologists [ 16 , 17 ]. We theorized that AI may be able to efficiently assess and discern credible information among online text sources with similar efficacy as human reviewers.…”

Research progress of biomaterials and innovative technologies in urinary tissue engineering

“…Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is widely noticed by researchers and clinicians because it is rich in a variety of growth factors and cytokines, such as insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), bFGF, EGF, VEGF, TGF-β, and PDGF ( Marques et al, 2015 ; Ziegler et al, 2019 ; Poulios et al, 2021 ; Khodamoradi et al, 2022 ). It has been reported that the injection of PRP could promote the proliferation of urothelial cells and the expression of cytoskeleton and urinary barrier function protein in the treatment of recurrent urinary tract infection ( Jiang et al, 2021 ).…”

Peyronie’s Disease: An Outcomes-Based Guide to Non-Surgical and Novel Treatment Modalities

“…Moreover, given that autologous PRP is currently the most commonly utilized approach to administration, it should be noted that there is some recent data to suggest that growth factor concentration can vary among men with ED. 94 This data could suggest that not all patients may achieve the same benefits from their own PRP and that more research into what patient factors may potentiate or impair PRP response will also be important to optimize patient selection and treatment efficacy. A recent systematic review concluded that currently there is not enough data to suggest that PRP improves PD significantly enough to achieve easier sexual penetration.…”