Progress and prospect of stem cell therapy for diabetic erectile dysfunction

Table 1 Characteristics of the articles published

Ref.	Treatment factor	Method/transfer/period	Evidence	Outcome
[42]	Rat	Injection with ADSCs (1 × 106), EPCs (1 × 106), and ADSCs/EPCs (0.5 × 106/0.5 × 106)	ADSC/EPC group displayed more significantly enhanced ICP and ICP/MAP than the DED or ADSC or EPC group (P < 0.05). (After 28 d)	Combined transplantation of ADSCs and EPCs has a synergic effect in repairing the endothelial function of DED rats
	ADSCs/EPCs/combined ADSCs and EPCs
[43]	Human USCs	Coculture of USCs and rat corpus (CCECs) treated with AGEs/injection with USCs (1 × 106) in rat DED model	USCs protected CCECs from AGE-induced autophagic dysfunction and cellular damage/ DED rats showed lower ratio of ICP/MAP, reduced expression of endothelial markers, and fewer autophagic vacuoles in the cavernosal endothelium	Intracavernous injection of USCs up-regulates autophagic activity in the cavernosal endothelium
[44]	Combined HGF and ADSCs	Injection with ADSCs alone or combined with HGF	Significant down-regulation of TGFβ1-Smad signaling	HGF enhance the beneficial effects of ADSCs on DED through down-regulation of the TGFb1-Smad signaling pathway
[45]	Combined BMSCs and LESWT	1/3 d after BMSC transplantation, the number of surviving BMSCs in the cavernous body was counted	LESWT favored the survival of transplanted BMSCs in the cavernous body, increased stromal cell-derived factor-1, and enhanced angiogenesis	Combined LESWT and BMSC improve the erectile function of DED rats more effectively than either alone
[46]	HP and human BMSCs	hBMSC (1 × 106 cells/mL) seeded on oxygen-saturated HPs	cGMP and NOS levels rose through prolonged stem cell survival	Stem cell/oxygen-releasing HP hybrid system could further improve erectile function
[48]	ADSCs expressing VEGF	ADSCs expressing large amounts of VEGF through virus transfection	VEGF-ADSCs stimulated endothelial function, and increased the content of smooth muscle and pericytes	VEGF-ADSCs improve erectile function
[57]	ADSC EVs	ADSC EVs through ultracentrifugation and treatment of DED rat model through ICI	ADSC-derived EXOs and ADSCs increased the ratio of intracavernous pressure	ADSC-derived EXOs and ADSCs are able to rescue corpus cavernosum endothelial and smooth muscle cells by inhibiting apoptosis
	USC EVs	USC EVs through ultracentrifugation and treatment of DED rat model through ICI	USC-EVS enhanced the expression of endothelial cell markers in DED rats, reduced collagen deposition, and improved neurogenic erectile response through pro-angiogenic miRNAs	USC-EV transplantation can ameliorate DED in rats via mechanisms that may involve the delivery of proangiogenic miRNAs

ADSCs: Adipose tissue-derived stem cells; EPCs: Endothelial progenitor cells; ICP: Intracavernous pressure; MAP: Mean arterial pressure; DED: Diabetic erectile dysfunction; CCECs: Cavernosal vascular endothelial cells; AGEs: Glycation end products; HGF: Hepatocyte growth factor; BMSCs: Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells; LESWT: Low energy shock wave; HPs: Oxygen-releasing hollow microparticles; EVs: Extracellular vesicles; USCs: Urine derived stem cells.