opioid pain killers: how do they work?

What is it about?

Opioids are the most commonly used strong pain killers. However, they produce detrimental side effects like apnoea, nausea, cognitive impairment and addiction. These actions limit efficacy and have lead to widespread misuse. This article explains the underlying mechanisms and describes novel discoveries that may surmount current shortcomings.

Featured Image

Why is it important?

It is important to understand how opioids act on the nervous system in order to come up with novel concepts in drug development. New pain killers are urgently needed because the prevalence of chronic pain is increasing with the aging population and the rising incidence of inflammatory diseases.

Perspectives