Nanoparticles used to deliver targeted ED drugs

Nanoparticles "smaller than a grain of pollen" have been engineered to carry minute quantities of therapeutics for erectile dysfunction, effectively delivering the drug directly through the skin in animal models. And the team of researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University says that the same approach could be a better alternative to existing drugs while safely working in men who currently are prohibited from taking the tablet meds.

Scientists used rats bred to suffer from erectile dysfunction to test the nanoparticles. "The response time to the nanoparticles was very short, just a few minutes, which is basically what people want in an erectile dysfunction medication," says Dr. Kelvin Davies. "In both rats and humans, it can take 30 minutes to one hour for oral erectile dysfunction medications to take effect."

The oral drugs are associated with a number of side effects, including blurred vision and upset stomachs. Men who have suffered a heart attack, meanwhile, are prevented from getting the ED drugs at all. But the researchers say that a locally applied topical solution was effective without side effects in rodents. ED drugs have been prominent best-sellers and an improved approach could also prove to be highly profitable.

- read the BBC report
- here's the story from HealthDay News