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This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 292/3/R1359    most recent 00532.2006v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (2) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Nout, Y. S. Articles by Schmidt, M. H. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Nout, Y. S. Articles by Schmidt, M. H.

INNOVATIVE METHODOLOGY

WATER AND ELECTROLYTE HOMEOSTASIS

Novel technique for monitoring micturition and sexual function in male rats using telemetry

¹Department of Neuroscience, Laboratory of Central Nervous System Repair, and Spinal Trauma and Repair Laboratories, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio; ²Department of Neurological Surgery, Brain and Spinal Injury Center, University of California, San Francisco, California; and ³Ohio Sleep Medicine and Neuroscience Institute, Dublin, Ohio

Submitted 24 July 2006 ; accepted in final form 2 November 2006

We developed a novel technique to simultaneously monitor micturitions and erections in rats by using pressure monitoring within the corpus spongiosum of the penis (CSP). We present data validating this technique and report pressure waveform characteristics of micturition and erectile events during four different behavioral contexts in 10 awake, freely-moving male rats. Telemetric pressure transducers were implanted in the bulb of the CSP. CSP pressure was monitored while the animals were simultaneously recorded on video for determination of presence and volume (n = 7) of micturitions and while the animals underwent behavioral tests for determination of erections. Observed micturitions and CSP pressure waveforms characteristic of micturitions occurred simultaneously (r = 0.98) at a frequency of 32 ± 4 micturitions per 24 h and with a volume of 0.95 ± 0.12 ml/urination. Micturition duration recorded by CSP pressure and volume determined by urine weight were highly correlated (r = 0.82). We found that 100% of visually confirmed erectile events occurred simultaneously with CSP pressure waveforms characteristic of erections during ex copula reflex erection tests. During noncontact erection and mating tests more erections were identified by telemetry than by observation alone. Erections during mating tests had a different appearance than those seen in other contexts; they were shorter in duration (P < 0.05) and typically were characterized by a single suprasystolic CSP pressure peak, highlighting the context-specificity of erections. Quality of recordings remained stable in three of four rats we followed for 8 wk. We demonstrate that telemetric recording of CSP pressure provides a quantitative and qualitative assessment of penile erections and micturition in freely behaving rats.

bulbospongiosus; corpus spongiosum penis; urogenital; erection; context-specificity

This article has been cited by other articles:

				J. C. T. Salas, H. Iwasaki, E. Jodo, M. H. Schmidt, A. Kawauchi, T. Miki, Y. Kayama, M. Otsuki, and Y. Koyama Penile erection and micturition events triggered by electrical stimulation of the mesopontine tegmental area Am J Physiol Regulatory Integrative Comp Physiol, January 1, 2008; 294(1): R102 - R111. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]