OBJECTIVE
To investigate the effect and mechanism of a Chinese medicine (Epimedium brevicornum Maxim [EbM]) on elicitation of penile erection in the rat.
METHODS
Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were used. The penile intracavernous pressure (ICP) was monitored. Intracavernous administration of
Epimedium brevicornum Maxim (EbM) has been reputed to have sexual stimulation effects on males. The study is aimed to test the hypothesis that EbM extracts relaxed the corpus cavernosum (CC) smooth muscle through activation of multitargets on nitric oxide (NO)/cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP)