Researcher Patricia Brennan studies the penises of male ducks. She hopes a better understanding of male duck anatomy could someday lead to new and innovative ways to treat erectile dysfunction in human males. Or is this just quack science?
When researcher Patricia Brennan of Mount Holyoke College was a little girl, she probably didn’t tell people, “When I grow up, I want to measure duck penises!” But that’s exactly what she’s doing now, and it may have a big impact on men with erectile dysfunction.
Competition Among Male Ducks
Brennan wanted to test whether competition between male birds would influence the size and shape of their penis. She chose ducks because they’re one of the few birds that actually have a penis.
Working with the Livingston Ripley Waterfowl Conservancy in Litchfield, Connecticut, Brennan and her team began by measuring the penises of two species of ducks:
- Ruddy ducks, which don’t form pair bonds, are very promiscuous and have long penises by duck standards.
- Lesser scaups, which form seasonal pair bonds, have shorter penises.
The researchers observed and measured the ducks for two years and found that the lesser scaup ducks that were housed in groups with other males grew longer penises.
They also found that the smaller ruddy ducks that were housed in groups grew their penises faster than males housed in pairs. But Brennan points out that stress hormones may affect the length of the penis. “In ruddy ducks, the stress from male aggression may be a contributing mechanism for why small males in the groups can’t grow a long penis,” she says.
In past research, scientists found that in the spring, ruddy ducks grow corkscrew penises that can be up to 10 inches long before shrinking drastically in the summer.
Relevance for ED in Humans
According to Brennan, ducks can regrow a penis every year, “which must mean they have penis stem cells.
“If we could figure out a human application of this discovery,” explains Brennan, “it could be important for men who have erectile dysfunction, or who have lost penis function through an accident or during military service.”
In the meantime, men with ED caused by insufficient blood flow to the penis will have to continue to rely on oral ED drugs such as Viagra and Cialis to treat their symptoms of impotence. Did you know that you can often save time and money by ordering your ED medications from a longtime online facilitator such as eDrugstore.com? To learn more, check out eDrugstore’s Erectile Dysfunction page.
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