A team of scientists at the Department of Biochemistry and Immunology of the Institute of Biological Sciences at the Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil, evaluated the efficacy of a molecule from the venom of the armed spider (Phoneutria nigriventer) to improve erectile function of hypertensive and diabetic animals.
Armed spider is a typical species from Brazil, Uruguay and northern Argentina, which is characterized by the presence of four eyes, two reddish chelicerae (that kind of pincers that come out of its mouth) and hairy and thick legs. Among the symptoms caused by the poison of this arachnid, there are respiratory problems, sweating, tachycardia, paralysis, and something very peculiar: a painful erection of several hours, which can even lead to impotence.
Since the beginning of the 2000s, this team of researchers has studied the possibility of creating a drug based on this poison, exploiting its ability to stimulate sexual arousal, but without side effects. First the team scientists synthesized in the laboratory the component of the poison responsible for the erection, a peptide called pNPP-19.
Previously they had already shown that this synthetic drug gave good results in rats with erectile dysfunction due to lesions in the cavernous nerves. The peptide induced relaxation of the spongy tissue of the penis and clitoris, improving the blood flow in them, facilitating the erection.
The latest findings of this team of researchers which showed very good results in diseased mice, without generating side effects.
As they did not known if it was safe to use the treatment in patients at risk, their latest study —published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine— tested the peptide in rat and mouse models of erectile dysfunction also affected by diabetes or hypertension. The results showed the peptide could be administered effectively and safely.
Source: Agencia ID, The Journal of Sexual Medicine
