Lightning-Nl
Bluelighter
- Joined
- Nov 11, 2012
- Messages
- 1,245
I am having a hard time clarifying this using materials online.
I know that there are chemicals which mimic neurotransmitters and therefore don't actually heighten levels of said neurotransmitter, but rather "enhance it" by mimicking the neurotransmitter. (one such category would be benzodiazepines). And then there are chemicals that exert their MOA by heightening or lowering levels of neurotransmitters. For instance I know that Amphetamine doesn't actually bind to (and therefore doesn't mimic) Dopamine receptors, but heightens it through indirect agonization (reversing transporters).
This is where I get confused. I always thought that when a drug binds to a receptor, it releases its respective neurotransmitter and that's what produces its effects. However, I know that benzodiazepines don't actually heighten GABA but rather make the body believe that massive amounts of GABA are binding to the receptors.
So what's the actual deal here? Was I wrong that when a drug binds to a receptor that it doesn't release that receptors neurotransmitter? But rather just mimics it? Or was I right?
On a side note. Do opiates mimic endogenous peptides? Or does it cause a release of endogenous opiates?
Thanks guys.
I know that there are chemicals which mimic neurotransmitters and therefore don't actually heighten levels of said neurotransmitter, but rather "enhance it" by mimicking the neurotransmitter. (one such category would be benzodiazepines). And then there are chemicals that exert their MOA by heightening or lowering levels of neurotransmitters. For instance I know that Amphetamine doesn't actually bind to (and therefore doesn't mimic) Dopamine receptors, but heightens it through indirect agonization (reversing transporters).
This is where I get confused. I always thought that when a drug binds to a receptor, it releases its respective neurotransmitter and that's what produces its effects. However, I know that benzodiazepines don't actually heighten GABA but rather make the body believe that massive amounts of GABA are binding to the receptors.
So what's the actual deal here? Was I wrong that when a drug binds to a receptor that it doesn't release that receptors neurotransmitter? But rather just mimics it? Or was I right?
On a side note. Do opiates mimic endogenous peptides? Or does it cause a release of endogenous opiates?
Thanks guys.