Comparison of the gut microbiome composition between men with erectile dysfunction and a matched cohort: a pilot study

BackgroundTo-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 that it is worthwhile to investigate a link between the two. ObjectiveTo investigate the potential association between the gut microbiome and erectile dysfunction. MethodsStool samples were collected from 28 participants with erectile dysfunction and 32 age-matched controls. Metatranscriptome sequencing was used to analyze the samples. ResultsNo 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. DiscussionThe 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. ConclusionsThe 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.