For the first time, scientists at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and collaborators solved the crystal structure of the activated kappa opioid receptor bound to a morphine derivative. They then created ...
Jan 4, 2018
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The hormone oxytocin, the so-called hug hormone or cuddle chemical, has more nicknames than proven medical uses. However, oxytocin may benefit children with autism spectrum disorders if receptors for opioids—brain chemicals ...
May 2, 2017
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A commercially available drug may help drastically reduce two side effects of opioid painkillers—a growing tolerance and a paradoxical increased sensitivity to pain—without affecting the drugs' ability to reduce pain, ...
Jan 17, 2017
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New research may help explain why drug treatments for addiction and depression don't work for some patients.
Sep 2, 2015
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(Medical Xpress)—Women tend to become addicted to drugs and relapse faster than men, though the biological reasons are not completely clear. Now, investigators at the Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research and ...
Jan 30, 2015
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(Medical Xpress)—Researchers at the School of Medicine have identified a subset of nerve cells that mediates a form of chronic, touch-evoked pain called tactile allodynia, a condition that is resistant to conventional pain ...
Mar 10, 2014
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The bodies of mammals, including humans, respond to injury by releasing endogenous opioids—compounds that mitigate acute pain. A team of researchers led by those at the University of Kentucky has uncovered groundbreaking ...
Sep 19, 2013
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Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have described findings that could enable the development of more effective drugs for addiction with fewer side effects.
Aug 2, 2013
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A drug targeting a protein complex containing two different types of opioid receptors may be an effective alternative to morphine and other opioid pain medications, without any of the side effects or risk of dependence, according ...
Jul 15, 2013
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Opioids, such as morphine, are still the most effective class of painkillers, but they come with unwanted side effects and can also be addictive and deadly at high doses. Designing new pain-killing drugs of this type involves ...
Jun 14, 2013
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