New ED Treatments: Spider Venom and a Topical Ointment?

Thursday, October 08 2009

October 8, 2009

Most people wouldn't want to be in the same room as the most venomous spider in the world. But one day, people may voluntary ask to consume toxin from the venom of the deadly Brazilian wandering spider. 

It turns out that, when bitten by the wandering spider, some men suffer painful erections that last more than 4 hours and sometimes lead to permanent damage to the penis. This led researchers to isolate the Tx2-6 toxin in the spider's venom, and inject it into rats to measure potential improvements in erectile function.

Doctors at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta radioactively labeled and injected a purified form of the toxin into rats that suffered from high blood pressure and severe erectile dysfunction. The researchers found that the toxin had a very positive reaction in the rats. Results showed improved levels of nitric oxide, which led to penile relaxation and erections.

Viagra, Cialis and Levitra all work similarly to the isolated toxin, in that they all enhance the effects of nitric oxide, a chemical that relaxes smooth muscles in the penis during sexual stimulation and allows increased blood flow.

"The concept that a venom can have an effect on erection is highly plausible," said Dr. Arnold Melman, chief of urology at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City. "This is very interesting and exciting, but also very early."

Various doctors lauded the work.

"We do need more research," added lead researcher Kenia Pedrosa Nunes, Ph.D., Medical College of Georgia. "I'm sure it can be a pharmacological tool that may one day be able to help patients who cannot take Viagra."

Topical ED Ointment Shows Promise

Many have tried, but all have failed. Apparently, it's pretty hard to formulate and perfect a topical ointment for erectile dysfunction.

Researchers at Yeshiva University in New York, however, may be on to something. They are testing a drug-delivery system that consists of nanoparticles – each smaller than a grain of pollen – in mice. And, based on the positive results, researchers will be performing further testing on the ED ointment.

If it comes to market, this topical Viagra should prove to be a safer and more effective ED therapy with less side effects. Who knows, depending on how the FDA views the safety of the product, and whether or not they want the ointment to be in the hands of the general public, the product could potentially be sold over the counter.

The groundbreaking research tested nanoparticles encapsulating nitric oxide to see if they can carry tiny payloads of various drugs or other medically useful substances and successfully release them in a manner that is controllable and sustainable. The study found that Einstein nanoparticles, which have been shown to penetrate the skin, can allow the targeted delivery of compounds that treat ED. This essentially eliminates the systemic side effects caused by the three current, FDA-approved pill medications.

"Most of the animals, nearly 90 percent, showed a response to treatment with the nanoparticles," says co-author Joel M. Friedman, M.D., Ph.D., professor of physiology & biophysics and of medicine. And, response time to the nanoparticles was very quick, just a few minutes. Current ED pill medications do not begin to work to their full potential for at least 20 to 30 minutes.

Clinical studies on humans could begin in a few years if nanoparticle studies on animals continue to progress as expected. However, as investigators cautioned, the time from a proof-of-concept trial in animals to approved use in humans could be at least a decade.

Although studies of the spider venom treatment and nanoparticle treatment are still in their infancy, middle-aged men who currently do not suffer from ED complications may have a failsafe in case they ever do.

Brian Bujdos