AN ALTERNATIVE TO OPIODS? COMPOUND FROM MARINE SNAIL IS A POTENT PAIN RELIEVER
posted: Jan. 31, 2018.
|
Scientists at the University of Utah have found a compound that blocks pain by targeting a pathway not associated with opioids. Research in rodents indicates that the benefits continue long after the compound has cleared the body. The findings were reported online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciencesjournal.
In this study, the researchers found that a compound isolated from snail’s venom, Rg1A, acts on a pain pathway distinct from that targeted by opioid drugs. Using rodent models, the scientists showed that a9a10 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR) function as a pain pathway receptor and that RgIA4 is an effective compound to block this receptor. The pathway adds to a small number of non-opioid–based pathways that could be further developed to treat chronic pain.
Source: University of Utah Health News via MDLinx [12/31/17]
Courtesy of Barry Block, editor of PM News.
Brought to you by Doctor John A. Hardy, owner of Toronto's Foot Clinic, Academy Foot and Orthotic Clinics.
|