Nerve Growth Factor & Hypogonadism

[Michael Scally MD]

[OA] [Mice] Nasal Delivery of Nerve Growth Factor Rescue Hypogonadism by Up-Regulating GnRH and Testosterone

Background - Nerve growth factor (NGF) plays essential roles in regulating the development and maintenance of central sympathetic and sensory neurons. However, the effects of NGF on hypogonadism remain unexplored.

Methods - To assess the effects of NGF on hypogonadism, we established a convenient and noninvasive way to deliver NGF to the hypothalamus by spraying liposome-encapsulated NGF into the nasal cavity. The ten-month-old aging male senescence accelerate mouse P8 (SAMP8) mice with age-related hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism were used to study the role of NGF in hypogonadism.

The age-matched accelerated senescence-resistant mouse R1 (SAMR1) served as a control. The ten-month-old SAMP8 mice were treated with NGF twice per week for 12 weeks. Sexual hormones, sexual behaviors, and fertility were analyzed after NGF treatment. And the mechanisms of NGF in sex hormones sexual function were also studied.

Findings - NGF could enhance the sexual function, improve the quality of the sperm, and restore the fertility of aging male SAMP8 mice with age-related hypogonadism by activating gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neuron and regulating secretion of GnRH. And NGF regulated the GnRH release through the PKC/p-ERK1/2/p-CREB signal pathway.

Interpretation - These results suggest that NGF treatment could alleviate various age-related hypogonadism symptoms in male SAMP8 and may be usefulness for age-related hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism and its related subfertility.

Luo J, Yang Y, Zhang T, et al. Nasal delivery of nerve growth factor rescue hypogonadism by up-regulating GnRH and testosterone in aging male mice. EBioMedicine. Redirecting

 

[Michael Scally MD]

[OA] [Mice] Nasal Delivery of Nerve Growth Factor Rescue Hypogonadism by Up-Regulating GnRH and Testosterone

Background - Nerve growth factor (NGF) plays essential roles in regulating the development and maintenance of central sympathetic and sensory neurons. However, the effects of NGF on hypogonadism remain unexplored.

Methods - To assess the effects of NGF on hypogonadism, we established a convenient and noninvasive way to deliver NGF to the hypothalamus by spraying liposome-encapsulated NGF into the nasal cavity. The ten-month-old aging male senescence accelerate mouse P8 (SAMP8) mice with age-related hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism were used to study the role of NGF in hypogonadism.

The age-matched accelerated senescence-resistant mouse R1 (SAMR1) served as a control. The ten-month-old SAMP8 mice were treated with NGF twice per week for 12 weeks. Sexual hormones, sexual behaviors, and fertility were analyzed after NGF treatment. And the mechanisms of NGF in sex hormones sexual function were also studied.

Findings - NGF could enhance the sexual function, improve the quality of the sperm, and restore the fertility of aging male SAMP8 mice with age-related hypogonadism by activating gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neuron and regulating secretion of GnRH. And NGF regulated the GnRH release through the PKC/p-ERK1/2/p-CREB signal pathway.

Interpretation - These results suggest that NGF treatment could alleviate various age-related hypogonadism symptoms in male SAMP8 and may be usefulness for age-related hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism and its related subfertility.

Luo J, Yang Y, Zhang T, et al. Nasal delivery of nerve growth factor rescue hypogonadism by up-regulating GnRH and testosterone in aging male mice. EBioMedicine. Redirecting

[OA] Nerve Growth Factor As A New Treatment For Testosterone Deficiency?

As a clinician and researcher in the treatment of male infertility and sexual dysfunction, I was intrigued by the work of Luo and co-workers in this volume of EBioMedicine. https://www.ebiomedicine.com/article/S2352-3964(18)30307-4/fulltext

The authors investigated the effect of intranasal administration of nerve growth factor (NGF) in aging male mice, and reported a variety of benefits, including enhanced sexual function, improved sperm quality, and restored fertility in SAMP8 mice.

Experiments suggest these multiple effects were mediated via gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) release through the PKC/p-ERK1/2/p-CREB signal pathway.

What is the clinical significance of this work?

Morgentaler A. Nerve growth factor as a new treatment for testosterone deficiency? EBioMedicine 2018;36:10-1. https://www.ebiomedicine.com/article/S2352-3964(18)30376-1/fulltext

 

[al'sameesh]

This is good. There are alot of nootropics, peptides, extracts and so forth that appear to work through NGF/BDNF.

Things like Selank/Semax, 7,8DHF, Noopept, etc.