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SEOUL -- A new sildenafil analog has been detected by a research team affiliated with South Korea's drug and food safety watchdog during the screening of dietary supplements adulterated with erectile dysfunction drugs and analogous substances.
The new substance is a modification of the chemical structure of sildenafil, which has been sold as the brand name Viagra, a famous medication used to treat erectile dysfunction and pulmonary arterial hypertension, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.
In an inspection that began in 2015, the ministry found that 131 health functional foods and dietary supplements contained sildenafil, Tadalafil marketed under the name Cialis and analogous substances. Researchers detected a new analog named "desmethylpiperazinyl propoxysildenafil."
"The ultraviolet spectrum of this compound was highly similar to that of sildenafil and almost identical to that of desmethylpiperazinyl sildenafil," the ministry's research team said in a paper carried by Science & Justice, an international science journalist.
Erectile dysfunction prevalence is noticeably high, leading to an increase in the use of nutraceuticals for male enhancement. However, the global market is invaded by counterfeit and adulterated nutraceuticals claimed to be of natural origin sold with a therapeutic claim.
reporter
Lim Chang-won
cwlim34@ajunews.com
