Humans have been cultivating opium for over 5500 years, since 3500 BC. The effects of opium extracts have been used by many ancient physicians in Persia, Ancient Greece and Rome for thousands of years. Paracelsus introduced opium extract as a drug (“Laudanum”) in 1527. Morphine has been purified in 1803, more than 200 years ago. Opioid receptors have been described in 1972 and studied intensively ever since. The first opioid receptor has been cloned in 1992 and we modern scientists are studying the pharmacology of opioids for over three decades now. Typing “opioids” in PubMed will produce today over 100,900 peer-reviewed publications. All the above make opioid receptors and their ligands as one of the most extensively studied system in medicinal science.
Nevertheless, one can safely say that there are still more questions than answers regarding the role and function of opioid receptors. The three main opioid receptors (MOP, DOP and KOP) and their “opioid-like” relatives (i.e. NOP, sigma) are expressed in many different tissues and thus play a variety of different roles in tissue/organ/system physiology. Analgesia, cardioprotection, gastrointestinal transit, feeding, mood, hormone secretion, immunoregulation, diuresis, inflammation, locomotor activity, memory; are some of the roles and functions of the main opioid receptors. In addition, these receptors have been shown not only to produce functional dimers with each other, but also with non-opioid receptors. This diverse functional repertoire produces a complex opioid biology and provides a challenge to opioid pharmacology.
The Opioid Pharmacology research group aims to address different research questions that involve opioid receptors in diverse systems. The main objective is to promote novel drug design & development for the treatment of diseases. The main areas that are currently being developed, but not limited to, are: bifunctional opioids, opioid analgesia in chronic and cancer pain, opioids in insulin production and release, opioids in cancer cell growth, cardioprotective opioids and opioid receptor dimerization (see projects below).
The Opioid Pharmacology group is based at the Tasmanian School of Pharmacy but all experiments take place at the laboratories of the Menzies Research Institute. The group welcomes research proposals, within or out of the above research areas, from self-funded students or students that need support to apply for external funding (please contact the respective superisors).
Contact: Nikolas.Dietis@utas.edu.au