A lot of the stuff i write down for this lecture is going to be very important as alun makes obvs which questions are examies
there are 4 different types of opioid receptors found in the body
the delta as well as others but delta - for example can be found in places that do not need analgesic effects - sino-atrial node and cardiac tissue. this is why opioids can have side effects that cause issues in these areas
it is important to note that the Mu Opioid peptide receptor (MOP) is the MAIN analgesic action and is found all over the body it is the place that all opioids act on to have analgesic action
what do opioids do at a cellular level? how do they work?
they bind to Mu opioid receptors pre synaptically (which themselves are G-coupled) it then sends a signal cascade and eventually causes phosphorylation of voltage gated Ca+ channels and prevent the influx of calcium into the cell (this influx of calcium is usually required for neurotransmitter filled vesicles to be bound to the target cell, no ca influx no neurotransmitter release and therefore no signal)