Venlafaxine is usually categorized as a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI), but it has been referred to as a serotonin-norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitor (SNDRI). It works by blocking the transporter "reuptake" proteins for key neurotransmitters affecting mood, thereby leaving more active neurotransmitters in the synapse. The neurotransmitters affected are serotonin and norepinephrine. Additionally, in high doses it weakly inhibits the reuptake of dopamine, with recent evidence showing that the norepinephrine transporter also transports some dopamine as well, since dopamine is inactivated by norepinephrine reuptake in the frontal cortex. The frontal cortex largely lacks dopamine transporters, therefore venlafaxine can increase dopamine neurotransmission in this part of the brain.
Venlafaxine indirectly affects opioid receptors (mu-, kappa1- kappa3- and delta-opioid receptor subtypes) as well as the alpha2-adrenergic receptor, and was shown to increase pain threshold in mice. When mice were tested with a hotplate analgesia meter (to measure pain), both venlafaxine and mirtazapine induced a dose-dependent, naloxone-reversible antinociceptive effect following intraperitoneal injection. These findings suggest venlafaxine's seemingly superior efficacy in severe depression as opioids become increasingly used as a measure of last resort for refractory cases.
