A team at the Medical College of Georgia in the US found that the toxins in the spider's venom were an effective treatment for impotence in rats, suggesting it could be used to help give men and women a boost in the bedroom.
Study author Dr Kenia Nunes said: 'We found the toxin responsible and performed experiments using hypertensive rats which have severe erectile dysfunction. The toxin was able to normalise the erectile function in these animals.'
'This is good because we know that some patients don't respond to the conventional therapy,' she added.
'This could be an optional treatment for them.'
A bite from the spider could also have some other, nastier, side effects, including loss of muscle control, severe pain, difficulty breathing and oxygen deprivation.
However, the scientists did manage to help the rats achieve side-effect-free erections.
The wandering spider, which is thought to be the most venomous spider on Earth, is also known as the armed spider, banana spider or Phoneutria nigriventer, and is found in South and Central America.
A previous survey by supermarket giant Tesco highlighted that men in Bristol may be most in need of a bite from the spider, after it emerged that sales of Viagra are highest in the West Country city.
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