The Role of Dynorphins: Opioid Neurotransmitters

For the past four decades, experts have discovered more about the important influence and role of dynorphins in the pathways of the human brain. They’re members of the opioid peptide family, which bind to kappa opioid receptors. They’re localized in well-known areas of the brain: the hippocampus, amygdala, hypothalamus, striatum, and spinal cord. Thus, their functions are related to learning and memory, emotional control, stress response, and pain. After a variety of experiments, experts began to discover the implications of dynorphins in human physiology. As a result, we now know that the pathophysiological mechanisms that may involve dynorphins include epilepsy,…