Comparison of the Gut Microbiome Composition Between Men With Erectile Dysfunction and a Matched Cohort: A Pilot Study

Authors

Mohamad M. Osman, Kansas City University
Muhammed A. Hammad, University of California, Irvine Medical Center
David W. Barham, University of California, Irvine Medical Center
Ryan Toma, Viome, Inc.
Farouk M. El-Khatib, University of California, Irvine Medical Center
Sharmin Dianatnejad, University of California, Irvine Medical Center
Jeanie Nguyen, University of California, Irvine Medical Center
Maxwell Towe, University of Miami
Edward Choi, University of California, Irvine Medical Center
Qiaqia Wu, University of California, Irvine Medical Center
Guruduth Banavar, Viome, Inc.
Ying Cai, Viome, Inc.
Pedro Moura, Viome, Inc.
Nan Shen, Viome, Inc.
Momchilo Vuyisich, Viome, Inc.
Natalie R. Yafi, Independent Registered Dietitian, Irvine, CA
Faysal A. Yafi, University of California, Irvine Medical Center

Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Andrology

Abstract

Background: To-date there have been minimal studies to investigate an association between the gut microbiome and erectile dysfunction. There have been many inflammatory diseases linked to gut microbiome dysbiosis; such as cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome. These same inflammatory diseases have been heavily linked to erectile dysfunction. Given the correlations between both conditions and cardiovascular disease and the metabolic syndrome, we believe it is worthwhile to investigate a link between the two.

Objective: To investigate the potential association between the gut microbiome and erectile dysfunction.

Methods: Stool samples were collected from 28 participants with erectile dysfunction and 32 age-matched controls. Metatranscriptome sequencing was used to analyze the samples.

Results: No significant differences were found in the gut microbiome characteristics, including Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes richness (p = 0.117), Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes diversity (p = 0.323), species richness (p = 0.364), and species diversity (p = 0.300), between the erectile dysfunction and control groups.

Discussion: The association of gut microbiome dysbiosis and pro-inflammatory conditions has been well studied and further literature continues to add to this evidence. Our main limitation for this study was our small sample size due to recruitment issues. We believe that a study with a larger population size may find an association between the gut microbiome and erectile dysfunction.

Conclusions: The results of this study do not support a significant association between the gut microbiome and erectile dysfunction. Further research is needed to fully understand the relationship between these two conditions.

DOI

10.1111/andr.13481

Publication Date

6-14-2023

Keywords

erectile dysfunction, gut dysbiosis, gut microbiome, men's sexual health

ISSN

2047-2927

Recommended Citation

Osman MM, Hammad MA, Barham DW, Toma R, El-Khatib FM, Dianatnejad S, Nguyen J, Towe M, Choi E, Wu Q, Banavar G, Cai Y, Moura P, Shen N, Vuyisich M, Yafi NR, Yafi FA. Comparison of the Gut Microbiome Composition Between Men With Erectile Dysfunction and a Matched Cohort: A Pilot Study. Andrology. 2023; . doi: 10.1111/andr.13481.