Acetildenafil (hongdenafil) is a synthetic

drug A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via insufflation (medicine), inhalation, drug i ...

which acts as a

phosphodiesterase inhibitor A phosphodiesterase inhibitor is a drug that blocks one or more of the five subtypes of the enzyme phosphodiesterase (PDE), thereby preventing the inactivation of the intracellular second messengers, cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and cycl ...

. It is an

analog Analog or analogue may refer to: Computing and electronics * Analog signal, in which information is encoded in a continuous variable ** Analog device, an apparatus that operates on analog signals *** Analog electronics, circuits which use analog ...

sildenafil Sildenafil, sold under the brand name Viagra among others, is a medication used to treat erectile dysfunction and pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary arterial hypertension. It is also sometimes used off-label for the treatment of certain sym ...

(Viagra) which has been detected in numerous different brands of "herbal

aphrodisiac An aphrodisiac is a substance that increases libido, sexual desire, sexual attraction, sexual pleasure, or sexual behavior. These substances range from a variety of plants, spices, and foods to synthetic chemicals. Natural aphrodisiacs, such as ...

" products sold in

convenience store A convenience store, convenience shop, bakkal, bodega, corner store, corner shop, superette or mini-mart is a small retail store that stocks a range of everyday items such as convenience food, groceries, beverages, tobacco products, lotter ...

s that claim to boost libido and alleviate

erectile dysfunction Erectile dysfunction (ED), also referred to as impotence, is a form of sexual dysfunction in males characterized by the persistent or recurring inability to achieve or maintain a Human penis, penile erection with sufficient rigidity and durat ...

. A range of designer analogs of licensed PDE₅ inhibitors such as sildenafil and

vardenafil Vardenafil, sold under the brand name Levitra among others, is a medication that is used for treating erectile dysfunction. It is a PDE5 inhibitor. It is taken by mouth. Medical uses Vardenafil's indications and contraindications are the same ...

have been detected in recent years in over-the-counter herbal aphrodisiac products, in an apparent attempt to circumvent both the legal restrictions on sale of erectile dysfunction drugs, which are

prescription-only A prescription drug (also prescription medication, prescription medicine or prescription-only medication) is a pharmaceutical drug that is permitted to be dispensed only to those with a medical prescription. In contrast, over-the-counter drugs ca ...

medicines in most Western countries, and the

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling discl ...

protection which allows sale of these drugs by competitors only with permission from the patent holders (typically, under a license from the inventors) and to introduce

efficacy Efficacy is the ability to perform a task to a satisfactory or expected degree. The word comes from the same roots as '' effectiveness'', and it has often been used synonymously, although in pharmacology a distinction is now often made betwee ...

into otherwise ineffective herbal products. These compounds have been demonstrated to display PDE₅ inhibitory activity ''in vitro'' and presumably have similar effects when consumed, but have undergone no formal testing in either humans or animals, and as such may represent significant health risks to consumers of these products due to their unknown safety profile. Attempts to ban such ingredients have not been successful for the most part, many jurisdictions having laws restricting chemical analogs but only those of

narcotics The term narcotic (, from ancient Greek ναρκῶ ''narkō'', "I make numb") originally referred medically to any psychoactive compound with numbing or paralyzing properties. In the United States, it has since become associated with opiates ...

and doping agents. However, at least one court case has resulted in a product being taken off the market.

References

{{Phosphodiesterase inhibitors Designer drugs Lactams PDE5 inhibitors Piceol ethers Piperazines Pyrazolopyrimidines Propyl compounds Ethoxy compounds

See also

References