An opioid is a chemical that works by binding to opioid receptors, which are found principally in the central nervous system and the gastrointestinal tract. The receptors in these two organ systems mediate both the beneficial effects and the side effects of opioids.
The ongoing opioid epidemic continues to take a heavy toll on American communities, with more than 80,000 opioid-related deaths reported in 2021, according to the National Institutes of Health.
According to new research headed by UC San Francisco scientists, a newly found group of molecules relieved pain in mice whilst preventing the sedating effect that limits the usage of opiates.
A Northwestern University-led team of researchers has developed a small, soft, flexible implant that relieves pain on demand and without the use of drugs.
An international team of researchers found that a gene therapy that prevents targeted nerve cell signaling substantially lower neuropathic pain with no detectable side effects.
North Carolina State University researchers have shown that neuron-like cells produced from human stem cells may be used to examine alterations in the neurological system linked to addiction.
In a work of systematic biology that advances the field, University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers have identified 16 distinct cell populations in a complex area of the midbrain called the ventral tegmental area, or VTA.
Recently, a group of Salk scientists unraveled a neural network in the brain that coordinates breathing rhythm with feelings of fear and pain.
Opioids are a class of substances that control sensations such as pain and emotions in animals. While plant-derived opioid narcotics such as morphine are the most well-recognized, other opioid molecules like endorphins can also be synthesized by the body or artificially developed in laboratories.
Opioids are potent painkillers; however, their use is hampered as patients become tolerant to them, necessitating more and more doses.
Many people live with chronic pain, and in some cases, cannabis can provide relief. But the drug also can significantly impact memory and other cognitive functions.
When two naturally occurring lipids are altered using a process called epoxidation, they are transformed into powerful agents that target numerous cannabinoid receptors in neurons, disrupting pathways that promote inflammation and pain.
Many modern medicines, including analgesics and opioids, are derived from rare molecules found in plants and bacteria.
University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists have discovered that a majority of back-pain patients they tested who were taking opioid painkillers produced anti-opioid antibodies.
In the largest study of its kind, Ottawa researchers found that children whose mothers reported using cannabis during pregnancy were at greater risk of autism.
A novel preclinical study by Keck Medicine of USC researchers, published in Arthritis & Rheumatology, reveals that a potential new opioid medication may have the ability to slow the progression of osteoarthritis while being less addictive than commonly prescribed opioid drugs.
Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine have developed and implemented a new way to better understand how human cells communicate with each other, how this communication is disrupted in human diseases and how this can be corrected pharmacologically.
A novel molecule LIH383 developed by scientists at the Luxembourg Institute of Health binds to and inhibits a formerly unknown opioid receptor in the brain.
Dr. John Streicher speaks to AZoLifeSciences about his research on improving opioid drugs to make them safer and more effective.
Psychedelics have proven effective in treating depression and PTSD, but the medical use of these drugs is limited by their hallucinations.
In an international study published recently, researchers from the University of Saskatchewan report that combined scientific effort would be needed to assemble and map the genome of cannabis to unravel its full potential for human health and agriculture.