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 It's All About the Erection! Drugs like Viagra, Cialis and Levitra relax blood vessels, resulting in an erection, but there's more involved in sexual arousal than just the hydraulics. Researchers at Abbott Laboratories have discovered the "D4" receptor that responds to the neurotransmitter dopamine, causing an erection. Of course, this discovery was made in rats, but certainly reproducing the research on men will follow soon. Abbott has created an experimental drug called ABT-724 that appears to affect only the D4 without affecting any other dopamine receptors. The drug has already passed Phase I studies. This revolutionary new hard-on drug will potentially produce erections without the side effects of headaches, nausea, heartburn and flushing that Viagra, Cialis or Levitra sometimes produce. "The ability of ABT-724 to facilitate penile erection together with the favorable side-effect profile indicates that ABT-724 could be useful for the treatment of erectile dysfunction," researchers wrote in their report, published recently in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. And speaking of side effects…  Many young men who are not experiencing erectile disfunction have been experimenting with Viagra as a recreational drug. These would-be studs in search of "hard-core" weekend fun may wind up experiencing fertility problems in the future. According to Dr. Sheena Lewis, director of the Reproductive Medicine Research Group at the UK's Queen's University, sperm penetrate the egg wall through an "acrosome reaction," which involves egg-piercing digestive enzymes.Viagra causes 79% of the individual spermatazoa to initiate their digestive enzymes before reaching the egg. Each sperm is only capable of one "acrosome reaction," and if it occurs before the sperm meets the egg, the sperm is rendered infertile. In addition, there are signs that eggs fertilized by a sperm "powered by" Viagra may not develop normally. These findings were presented at the British Fertility Society's recent annual conference in Cheltenham, UK, and should serve as a warning to those who might misuse Viagra. But the men for whom Viagra WAS intended may not need it as much as everyone thinks! In a study conducted by Tiina Vares of Canterbury University, men, aged from their mid-30s to early 70s, opined that sex can be "less selfish, more intimate, and generally better than before" without intercourse. Vares's research is part of a three-year study into the socio-cultural implications of Viagra and similar drugs and was presented to the Association of Gerontology. Wine and Women Researchers in Queensland, Australia studied 696 women with ovarian cancer and 786 women without cancer, and discovered that women who consume an average of two glasses of wine a day enjoy a 50% less risk of developing cancer than women who consume less than one glass of wine a day on average. The researchers think the antioxidants and/or phytoestrogens in the wine are responsible, as opposed to the alcohol. Unfortunately for you beer drinkers, it appears that cerveza has no effect on reducing risk of cancer. Now, wake up!  According to a recent study published in the April 15, 2004 issue of the American Journal of Cardiology, drinking coffee raises blood pressure in both men and women by approximately an equal amount, but it does so in different ways. Dr. William R. Lovallo of The University of Oklahoma found that caffeine raises blood pressure by causing the heart to pump faster in women, while in men who consume caffeine, blood pressure is increased by narrowing the blood vessels.Lovallo and his colleagues had 42 pre-menopausal women and 35 men of similar ages take either an inactive pill or a pill containing as much caffeine as two to three cups' worth of coffee. All the participants were in good health, had normal blood pressure and were regular coffee drinkers. Dr. Lovallo explains, "Caffeine can...elevate pressure still further when a person is under mental stress. If you are developing high blood pressure, or if you already have high blood pressure, give up caffeine." Because caffeine raises blood pressure by the same amount in both men and women, the sexes share similar potential health risks. So, ladies, keep sipping that red wine, but lay off the coffee! Assault with a Deadly Disease?  In St. Peters, Missouri, 28 year old Aaron Sindelar, an HIV-positive man, was arrested on a felony charge for having unprotected sex with his girlfriend. The woman, who was not identified, is awaiting test results to find out whether she has the virus, which causes AIDS.According to authorities, Sindelar was engaging in unprotected sex with his girlfriend in January, shortly after his release from prison, where he had been serving time for a second-degree burglary conviction. Sheriff's department spokesman Gerry Pollard said the charge of recklessly risking infection of another person with HIV carries a possible sentence of five to 15 years. The fact that Sindelar was aware that he was HIV positive when he was engaging in unprotected sex is the crux of his crime. Officials said Sindelar was being held in state custody Friday on an unrelated probation violation. They did not know if he had an attorney. Missouri is one of 30 states in which it is a crime to knowingly expose others to HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. So, then, could porn stars become potential murderers?  It may sound like a crazy question, but if you follow the logic of "assault with a deadly disease," things may get really sticky in San Fernando Valley. And we don't mean because of the lube. After adult film actor Darren James shot a porn flick in Brazil and then tested positive for HIV, it was discovered that he had infected newcomer Lara Roxx. This revelation brought the multi-billion dollar industry to a standstill and put potentially 60,000 porn workers on hold. Many of the major production companies have suspended filming. A third performer has tested positive. Thousands of active actors are anxiously awaiting their test results, and the industry is bracing for what could become an HIV epidemic. Along with the spike in panic and HIV testing, Yahoo reported search terms that "spiked included 'porn hiv scare,' 'hiv in porn,' and 'porn stars with hiv,' while searches on the term 'porn industry' were up a staggering 58,802%." It remains to be seen what the legal, societal and financial ramifications of the situation will be, not to mention the health ramifications.
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