James Coleman
Delivery
How morphine reaches the brain and what it does
1)How Morphine is Taken:
Depending on circumstance, morphine can either be taken by mouth, orally, or injected into the vein, muscles, areas around spinal cord, or under the skin. |
2)Where Does Morphine Go:
Morphine goes to the brain and central nervous system. After it reaches the brain, it will then bind to and activate specific opiate receptors (delta, mu and kappa). These receptors are involved in controlling different brain functions. In the central nervous and gastrointestinal systems, morphine could cause analgesia, anxiolysis, euphoria, sedation, respiratory depression, and gastrointestinal system smooth muscle contraction. |
3)How Does Morphine Get to Specific Locations:
If morphine is taken orally, it is absorbed into bloodstream, and from the bloodstream. If morphine is injected than morphine travels directly through the bloodstream. Once the morphine is in the bloodstream, it will be distributed all throughout the body. Due to its low lipid solubility, some morphine can go through the plasma around brain slowly(the plasma around the brain is also known as the blood-brain barrier). Morphine can do this because it has an O-H bond which has a strong Intermolecular Hydrogen bond with the water in Blood and molecules that can hydrogen bond have greater solubility in water because the O-H bond is the greatest factor in morphine's solubility. Secondly, it has a large non polar region but its polar regions of Oxygen and Nitrogen make the molecule polar. Both of these factors (hydrogen bonding the strongest impact) allow morphine to dissolve in the blood which contains water (a polar molecule), thus polar dissolving in polar. Because it goes through the plasma brain slowly, its effects will be administered slowly. When morphine reaches the brain, it will take on full effect. |
4)How Morphine Does the Job:
Opioid receptors are located on the presynaptic terminals of nociceptive C fibers and A delta fibers. When they are activated by an opioid agonist, it will indirectly inhibit voltage-dependent calcium channels. When it inhibits the voltage-dependent calcium channels, it decreases cAMP levels and blocks the release of pain neurotransmitters such as glutamate, substance P, and calcitonin gene-related peptide from the nociceptive fibers, which also causes analgesia. In other words, when the morphine activated opioid receptors in the brain, it decreases brain activity and blocks channels that relay neurotransmitters for pain.It is all due to mophine's solubility in water (blood) that allows for morphine to go through the plasma in a process of osmosis because of the polar-polar or, dipole-dipole interaction between morphine and blood. |