Skip to main content
Advertisement

Main menu

  • Home
  • Articles
    • Current Issue
    • Fast Forward
    • Latest Articles
    • Special Sections
    • Archive
  • Information
    • Instructions to Authors
    • Submit a Manuscript
    • FAQs
    • For Subscribers
    • Terms & Conditions of Use
    • Permissions
  • Editorial Board
  • Alerts
    • Alerts
    • RSS Feeds
  • Virtual Issues
  • Feedback
  • Submit
  • Other Publications
    • Drug Metabolism and Disposition
    • Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
    • Molecular Pharmacology
    • Pharmacological Reviews
    • Pharmacology Research & Perspectives
    • ASPET

User menu

  • My alerts
  • Log in
  • My Cart

Search

  • Advanced search
Molecular Pharmacology
  • Other Publications
    • Drug Metabolism and Disposition
    • Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
    • Molecular Pharmacology
    • Pharmacological Reviews
    • Pharmacology Research & Perspectives
    • ASPET
  • My alerts
  • Log in
  • My Cart
Molecular Pharmacology

Advanced Search

  • Home
  • Articles
    • Current Issue
    • Fast Forward
    • Latest Articles
    • Special Sections
    • Archive
  • Information
    • Instructions to Authors
    • Submit a Manuscript
    • FAQs
    • For Subscribers
    • Terms & Conditions of Use
    • Permissions
  • Editorial Board
  • Alerts
    • Alerts
    • RSS Feeds
  • Virtual Issues
  • Feedback
  • Submit
  • Visit molpharm on Facebook
  • Follow molpharm on Twitter
  • Follow molpharm on LinkedIn
Abstract

Cellular mechanisms of opioid tolerance: studies in single brain neurons.

M J Christie, J T Williams and R A North
Molecular Pharmacology November 1987, 32 (5) 633-638;
M J Christie
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
J T Williams
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
R A North
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • Article
  • Info & Metrics
  • eLetters
  • PDF
Loading

Abstract

Intracellular recordings of membrane potassium current were made from rat locus coeruleus in vitro. The effects of agonists at mu-opioid receptors were studied on neurons from rats that had been chronically treated with morphine; these were compared with actions on neurons from control rats. Tolerance to the opioid-induced increase in potassium conductance was observed, and this was more pronounced for normorphine than for [Met5]enkephalin and [D-Ala2, Mephe4, Gly5-ol]enkephalin: experiments with the irreversible receptor blocker beta-chlornaltrexamine indicated that normorphine had lower intrinsic efficacy than [Met5]enkephalin and [D-Ala2 MePhe4, Gly5-ol]enkephalin. This adaptation was not due to any change of the properties of the potassium conductance activated by mu-receptors because both full and partial agonists at alpha 2-adrenoceptors, which couple to the same potassium conductance, were unchanged in their effectiveness; nor was it associated with any change in the affinity of mu-receptors for the antagonist naloxone. Naloxone had no effect on the neurons other than simple competitive reversal of the action of the mu-receptor agonists. These results demonstrate that 1) the mechanism responsible for tolerance in locus coeruleus neurons is specifically associated with mu-receptors and/or their coupling to potassium channels, 2) the intrinsic efficacy of an opioid determines the degree of tolerance observed, and 3) tolerance and physical dependence can be dissociated at the cellular level.

MolPharm articles become freely available 12 months after publication, and remain freely available for 5 years. 

Non-open access articles that fall outside this five year window are available only to institutional subscribers and current ASPET members, or through the article purchase feature at the bottom of the page. 

 

  • Click here for information on institutional subscriptions.
  • Click here for information on individual ASPET membership.

 

Log in using your username and password

Forgot your user name or password?

Purchase access

You may purchase access to this article. This will require you to create an account if you don't already have one.
PreviousNext
Back to top

In this issue

Molecular Pharmacology
Vol. 32, Issue 5
1 Nov 1987
  • Table of Contents
  • Table of Contents (PDF)
  • Index by author
  • Back Matter (PDF)
  • Editorial Board (PDF)
  • Front Matter (PDF)
Download PDF
Article Alerts
Sign In to Email Alerts with your Email Address
Email Article

Thank you for sharing this Molecular Pharmacology article.

NOTE: We request your email address only to inform the recipient that it was you who recommended this article, and that it is not junk mail. We do not retain these email addresses.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
Cellular mechanisms of opioid tolerance: studies in single brain neurons.
(Your Name) has forwarded a page to you from Molecular Pharmacology
(Your Name) thought you would be interested in this article in Molecular Pharmacology.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Citation Tools
Abstract

Cellular mechanisms of opioid tolerance: studies in single brain neurons.

M J Christie, J T Williams and R A North
Molecular Pharmacology November 1, 1987, 32 (5) 633-638;

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero

Share
Abstract

Cellular mechanisms of opioid tolerance: studies in single brain neurons.

M J Christie, J T Williams and R A North
Molecular Pharmacology November 1, 1987, 32 (5) 633-638;
del.icio.us logo Digg logo Reddit logo Twitter logo Facebook logo Google logo Mendeley logo
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One

Jump to section

  • Article
  • Info & Metrics
  • eLetters
  • PDF

Related Articles

Cited By...

Similar Articles

Advertisement
  • Home
  • Alerts
Facebook   Twitter   LinkedIn   RSS

Navigate

  • Current Issue
  • Fast Forward by date
  • Fast Forward by section
  • Latest Articles
  • Archive
  • Search for Articles
  • Feedback
  • ASPET

More Information

  • About Molecular Pharmacology
  • Editorial Board
  • Instructions to Authors
  • Submit a Manuscript
  • Customized Alerts
  • RSS Feeds
  • Subscriptions
  • Permissions
  • Terms & Conditions of Use

ASPET's Other Journals

  • Drug Metabolism and Disposition
  • Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
  • Pharmacological Reviews
  • Pharmacology Research & Perspectives
ISSN 1521-0111 (Online)

Copyright © 2023 by the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics