Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · 1986 · 138 citations · 10 references
Morphine LevelsEndogenous CodeinePharmacotherapyExperimental PharmacologyMolecular PharmacologyAddiction MedicineHeroinNeurochemistryAnesthetic PharmacologyHealth SciencesPsychoactive DrugBehavioural PharmacologyBehavioral PharmacologyPoppy PlantNeuropharmacologyNervous SystemEndocrinologyPharmacologyNeurophysiologyNeuroanatomyAddictionPhysiologyOpioid OverdoseNeuroscienceAnesthesiaMedicineNeuropeptides
Endogenous codeine and morphine were identified in rat brain by immunological determination following HPLC. To demonstrate occurrence of a biosynthetic pathway to morphine in mammals similar to that used by the poppy plant, (+)-salutaridine, (-)-thebaine, and (-)-codeine were administered to rats intravenously. These compounds, which are intermediates in the synthesis of morphine in Papaver somniferum, caused a marked increase in the codeine and morphine levels in rat tissues. This provides evidence for a biosynthetic pathway to morphine in mammalians.
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Dynorphin Is a Specific Endogenous Ligand of the κ Opioid Receptor
Charles Chavkin, Iain F. James, Avram Goldstein · Science · 1982 · 1.2K citations
Alan R. Gintzler, A. Lévy, S. Spector · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · 1976 · 111 citations · Full text