Given how profound an influence opioids have on the world – for better or worse – scientists know surprisingly little about how these drugs actually work. A recent study led by researchers from ...

New research from a Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience researcher could transform how we understand the way opioids affect the brain. Despite significant discussion surrounding the ongoing ...

Mapping how Narcan reverses opioid overdose can provide a molecular blueprint for developing more effective drugs against overdose.

Unbiased whole-brain mapping of c-Fos identifies active brain regions following a rewarding dose of oxycodone. c-Fos-positive cells are shown in red; white matter tracks are shown in green. Opioids, ...

Scientists have known for decades that opioids relieve pain by binding to molecular switches in the brain called mu-opioid receptors. What they didn't know—until now—was exactly what happens next.

Dornsife researchers created 3D models of opioids hitting brain receptors, and of naloxone stopping the receptors from activating. (Henry Kofman / Daily Trojan file photo) The opioid crisis has killed ...

New research could transform how we understand the way opioids affect the brain. Despite significant discussion surrounding the ongoing opioid crisis, current understanding of how opioids function in ...

Washington State University researchers have discovered how a neural circuit—or a connection between two brain regions—drives relapse after opioid use, a finding that could lead to more effective ...

Researchers identified the structure of an opioid receptor in the brain during active engagement with a drug molecule. The discovery could facilitate the creation of safer and more effective opioid ...

Overdose deaths are a widespread problem North Carolinians have been struggling to combat in recent years. According to the state health department, American Indian/Indigenous and Black communities ...

Music can evoke intense pleasure, sometimes experienced physically as pleasant "chills." While the effect of music on pleasure is clear, the brain mechanisms behind musical enjoyment are not yet fully ...

A new imaging study by the Turku PET Centre in Finland showed that listening to favorite music affects the function of the brain's opioid system. Music can evoke intense pleasure, sometimes ...