The effect of pravastatin treatment on erectile dysfunction induced by methylglyoxal administration in rats

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of pravastatin treatment on diminished corpus cavernosum function associated with chronic methylglyoxal administration. Methods: Male rats were divided into three groups as control group rats, methylglyoxal (75 mg/kg/d in drinking water for 12 weeks) group rats, Pravastatin (10 mg/kg/d pravastatin 12 weeks concomitant with methylglyoxal) group rats. Endothelium-dependent, endothelium-independent and neurogenic corpus cavernosum relaxation were evaluated by acetylcholine, Sodium nitroprusside and electrical field stimulation (2–32 Hz), respectively. Also, in order to investigate the role of NO in endothelium-dependent and neurogenic relaxation experiments were done in the presence of N-Nitro-L-arginin metylester (L-NAME). Results: In methylglyoxal administrated rats, endothelium-dependent and neurogenic corpus cavernosum relaxation, were significantly impaired as compared to control rats. The diminished relaxation in response to acetylcholine or electrical field stimulation in methylglyoxal administrated rats were significantly improved by pravastatin treatment. Furthermore, incubation of L-NAME in tissues caused the difference between endothelial and neuronal relaxation responses to disappear. Conclusion: Pravastatin improves diminished endothelium-dependent and neurogenic corpus cavernosum relaxations in methylglyoxal administrated rats probably by regulating NO pathway.