Opioids slot into opioid receptors and activate them. This sends signals to your brain to relieve pain and promote pleasure. Both endogenous opioids, which your body naturally produces, and exogenous ...

Two different versions of the mu-opioid receptor within a cellular membrane illustrate how the receptor changes its conformation to send a signal into the cell. Scientists captured six high-resolution ...

The group of researchers were the first to take snapshots of the moment naloxone reverses an opioid overdose in the brain.

Kappa-opioid receptor (KOR) agonists represent a promising class of compounds that modulate pain, mood and various neurobehavioural processes. Unlike traditional opioids that primarily target the ...

Drugs that target opioid receptors sometimes have severe side effects. Thousands of people around the world die every day from overdoses involving opioids such as fentanyl. Researchers have taken a ...

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Vol. 119, No. 16 (April 19, 2022), pp. 1-10 (10 pages) Allosteric modulators of G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) ...

Opioid agonists are substances that activate opioid receptors in the central and peripheral nervous systems. They have several uses, from pain management to treating opioid use disorder. You have ...

Opioids are commonly known as powerful painkillers with strong psychoactive effects. They increase dopamine signaling in the brain, producing pleasurable sensations that can encourage repeated use and ...

Brandy Schillace’s review of “Candace Pert” by Pamela Rykman (Bookshelf, Nov. 15) contains a questionable conclusion: the discovery of the mu opioid receptor in 1972 “helped launch the opioid crisis” ...

Opioid receptors are proteins in the nervous system that interact with opioids. Opioid receptors are part of the endogenous opioid system. This is the body’s internal system for regulating pain, ...