Posted by Larry Hoover on November 9, 2002, at 22:08:14
In reply to Re: Opiates = very weird, Britt? » Jerrympls, posted by BrittPark on November 9, 2002, at 19:41:57
> Switching gears, different opioids have different relative effects at different receptors. Most people find morphine pleasurable. Most people feel more euphoria from hydrocodone than from codeine.
Another quirk arises from liver metabolism; codeine is metabolized by CYP2D6 into morphine, which is probably responsible for the analgesic effect. As 2D6 activity can vary 100-fold across the population, codeine is a poor pain drug for what are called 'low metabolizers'.
> Switching gears again, I wouldn't be surprised if there were genetic polymorphisms for opioid receptors, and thus the different effects on different people. I don't know if there is any evidence for this.
Yes, there is. And, mix the variability of receptor number/ratios, and that weird oligomerization process, and you get ????? as output.
> The fascinations of biochemistry,
>
> BrittUn-huh.
Lar
poster:Larry Hoover
thread:126471
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20021108/msgs/127085.html