Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from January, 2019

Endorphins combat stress and produce pleasure and well-being

Endorphins are endogenous hormones which are commonly known as happy chemicals as they produce a state of pleasure. Endorphins have opioid-like characteristic and it resembles morphine. Endorphins as a neuropeptide are released from body endogenously to combat stress. It is commonly known as natural painkiller produced by the body itself to relieve pain and stress. Endorphin was first discovered in the 1970s. Endorphins have their own specific binding or receptor sites that are known as µ-receptors and naloxone is used as a common clinical antagonist to study the effects of endorphins. Types of Endorphins: Endorphins are generally classified into four types on the basis of type and number of amino acids present in the polypeptide chain of endorphins. 1-       Alpha- endorphin 2-       Beta-endorphin 3-       Gamma- endorphin 4-       Sigma endorphin β-endorphins are ...