3. Emerging Regenerative Therapeutic Approaches for ED
3.1. Improving Erectile Functions Through Stem Cell-Based Bioengineering
3.2. Potential Rescuing Effect of Adipose-Derived Stem Cells on ED
3.3. Bone Marrow-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells
3.4. Induced Pluripotent and Other Stem Cell-Based Approaches for ED
[ATTACH=full]9761[/ATTACH]
Figure 4. Mechanistic insight into stem cell-based therapy of ED. The most widely studied stem cell types for ED include adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs), bone marrow-derived stem cells (BMSCs), urine-derived stem cells (UDSCs), induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), and neural embryonic stem cells (NESCs). During repair and regeneration, the stem cells regulate signaling pathways such as SDF/CXCR4 to mobilize, proliferate, and differentiate stem cells into nerve and endothelial cells. Further, these cells also release growth factors such as VEGF and BDNF to promote angiogenesis and nerve fiber regeneration, respectively. Upregulation of nitric oxide (NO) synthase results in reduced fibrosis and an increase in smooth muscle cell content in corpus cavernosum. Eventually, the immunomodulatory and anti-apoptotic impact of stem cells controls any further injury to penile nerves or muscles. Thus, the cumulative effect of stem cells renders it a potent regenerative therapeutic candidate for ED. MAP, mean arterial pressure.
