BGIG10116_34868: A Newly Discovered Gene Regulating Ejaculation Function.

Jingjing Gao,Pan Gao,Hu Li,Junhua Du,Xiansheng Zhang,Hui Jiang,Rui Gao,Xi Liu

doi:10.3389/fphys.2022.762272

Abstract

Ejaculation is a complex biphasic process involving a series of neurophysiological activities, such as the contraction of a large number of muscle groups and the ejaculation of semen from the urethra anterior. Due to the complexity of the process, many related factors have not been fully clarified, resulting in ejaculation dysfunction. As a common ejaculation dysfunction, lifelong premature ejaculation (LPE) is a problem for many people. Notably, gene polymorphism might play an important role in the etiology of LPE. However, the quest for identifying the actual genetic loci that contribute to LPE etiology has not been successful. Due to discrepancies in the design and methods of research, the correlation of most reports was not obtained in subjective replication experiments, and the conclusions may be inconsistent. In our study, three groups of ejaculation rats, namely, “rapid, normal, and delayed,” were selected based on the animal model of premature ejaculation (PE) in rats and the theory of ejaculation. Among them, the rats in the “rapid” ejaculation group can be used to stimulate humans with PE. Subsequently, we used the rat brain tissue for whole-transcriptome sequencing to screen the differential genes among the three groups. We tried to identify the actual genetic loci that contribute to PE etiology and provide a theoretical basis for the targeted therapy of PE.

Highlights

Ejaculation is a complex biphasic process involving a series of neurophysiological activities, such as the contraction of a large number of muscle groups and the ejaculation of the semen from the anterior urethra (Alwaal et al, 2015)
Jern et al (2007) conducted twin model-fitting analyses with different indicator variables of ejaculatory function based on a population sample of 3,946 twins and their siblings to investigate the genetic effects on premature ejaculation (PE) and found a significant moderate genetic effect (28%) in PE, which provide a convincing proof for the above conclusion (Jern et al, 2007)
11 male rats were classified as the “rapid ejaculatory” group, 13 male rats were classified as the “normal ejaculatory” group, and 10 male rats were classified as the “sluggish ejaculatory” group (Figure 1)

Summary

Introduction

Ejaculation is a complex biphasic process involving a series of neurophysiological activities, such as the contraction of a large number of muscle groups and the ejaculation of the semen from the anterior urethra (Alwaal et al, 2015). LPE has the following three characteristics: a) ejaculation has always occurred prior to or within about 1 min of vaginal penetration; b) those who are always or almost unable to control delayed ejaculation; and c) those who have negative personal consequences, such as distress, bother, and/or the avoidance of sexual intimacy (Parnham and Serefoglu, 2016). In the 1940s, Schapiro et al, have found that the incidences of PE in the male family members (fathers or brothers) of PE patients are higher than those without PE patients (Schapiro, 1943), which suggests that PE seems to be familial. This conclusion has been confirmed by Waldinger et al (1998). Jern et al (2007) conducted twin model-fitting analyses with different indicator variables of ejaculatory function based on a population sample of 3,946 twins and their siblings to investigate the genetic effects on PE and found a significant moderate genetic effect (28%) in PE, which provide a convincing proof for the above conclusion (Jern et al, 2007)

Methods

Results

Conclusion