PAO Group Inc (PAOG)

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For newbie! What is the difference between opium, opioids and opiates?

Opium refers to the latex from the pod of the poppy, Papaver Somniferum, which contains a whole host of alkaloids, each with their own activity. The primary alkaloid is Morphine although there are a host of other alkaloids that can serve different purposes, from Papaverine to Thebaine, Noscapine, Codeine, Narcotiline etc. These can be grouped by their chemical structure into many categories. Eg:
Phenanthrenes: eg. Morphine, Codeine, ThebaineIsoquinolines: eg. Noscapine, Papeverine, LaudanosineAporphines: eg. Glaucine, Bulbocapnine

Opiates are drugs that are found naturally in Opium, like Morphine, Codeine etc. This word should be differentiated from the term Opioid.

Opioids refer to drugs that exhibit Morphine-like effects by binding to receptors in the brain, known as Opioid Receptors. This includes both
Semi-synthetic derivatives of Morphine and Codeine like Hydro and Oxycodone, Hydro and Oxymorphone, Diamorphine (Heroin) and Naltrexone etc.Purely synthetic drugs like Pethidine/Meperidine (Demerol), Fentanyl, Methadone.Endogenously produced neuropeptides like beta-endorphin, endomorphin, Dynorphin, Deltorphin etc.