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Stereospecific Opiate Binding In Human Erythrocyte Membranes And Changes In Heroin Addicts, Leo G. Abood, Holly G. Atkinson, Mary Macneil
Stereospecific Opiate Binding In Human Erythrocyte Membranes And Changes In Heroin Addicts, Leo G. Abood, Holly G. Atkinson, Mary Macneil
Publications and Research
Stereospecific opiate binding has been demonstrated in human erythrocyte membranes, having a Kd of 9-10(-9) M. In most respects the binding characteristics resemble those of synaptic membranes. These included the correlation of binding affinity and pharmacological potency of opiates; competition by naloxone; inhibition by Ca2+ and Na+; and sensitivity to phospholipases and trypsin. A comparison of stereospecific opiate binding in control human subjects and heroin addicts revealed a 43% increase in the addict group.