adrenaline

Re: adrenaline

Originally posted by garb View Post

sorry didnt know where to post.

a friend has asked me this.

Adrenaline acts on various receptors in the bodies tissues and organs, how dooes this help with the development of drugs.

my background is pre hospital care. so keep it simple.

Adrenaline acts on receptors as you point out, and we can develop drugs that mimic that action. Examples of this would be amphetamines, ephedrine and cocaine. It also can be given directly to increase blood pressure, stimulate the heart in emergency situations etc.

To expand it a bit, your autonomic nervous system (your fight or flight mechanism) has two halves, the sympathetic and para-sympathetic parts. Adrenaline works in the sympathetic part.

When drugs are developed, they often mimic a normal body chemical activity, or block that activity. This can be used to lower blood pressure by blocking a mechanism, or clear your nose by mimicking one by narrowing the blood vessels in your nose.

Is that ok? Do you need any more? What job are you doing?

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