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REVIEW article

Front. Pharmacol.

Sec. Translational Pharmacology

Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fphar.2025.1635007

Hydrogel Technologies in Andrology: Advances in Research and Prospective Applications

Provisionally accepted
Xinlei GuoXinlei Guo1Jingyi ZhangJingyi Zhang1Yanxin GuanYanxin Guan1Xingzhao TianXingzhao Tian1Yanan GongYanan Gong1Yao XiaoYao Xiao1Fang YangFang Yang2Degui ChangDegui Chang1*Xujun YuXujun Yu1,2*
  • 1TCM Regulating Metabolic Diseases Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, 610075, China, Chengdu, China
  • 2School of Medical and Life Sciences, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, 611137, China, Chengdu, China

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Hydrogels, owing to their outstanding physicochemical properties and excellent biocompatibility, have emerged as a focal point of research and clinical application in andrological diseases. This review systematically summarizes cutting-edge progress in hydrogel applications for prostate cancer (PC), bladder cancer (BC), erectile dysfunction (ED), male reproductive medicine (MRM), and urinary tract tissue engineering. Current studies indicate that hydrogels can serve as protective spacers in PC radiotherapy to mitigate radiation-induced rectal toxicity and as precise drug-delivery vehicles to enhance antitumor efficacy. Moreover, hydrogels demonstrate unique and broad potential in neurovascular repair, immunomodulation, sperm selection, in vitro spermatogenesis modeling, and tissue regeneration. Future advancements in hydrogel technology-through intelligent responsive design, integration of bioactive molecules, incorporation of advanced manufacturing processes, and rigorous translational research-are expected to significantly elevate treatment standards for andrological diseases and improve patient quality of life.

Keywords: Hydrogel, andrological diseases, Drug delivery, Tissue Engineering, tumor treatment, Reproductive Medicine

Received: 25 May 2025; Accepted: 10 Jul 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Guo, Zhang, Guan, Tian, Gong, Xiao, Yang, Chang and Yu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence:
Degui Chang, TCM Regulating Metabolic Diseases Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, 610075, China, Chengdu, China
Xujun Yu, TCM Regulating Metabolic Diseases Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, 610075, China, Chengdu, China

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Supplementary Material