Practice question · True or false
Because naloxone only blocks opioid receptors and never activates them, giving it to a patient in an opioid overdose should have no meaningful effect.
Hints
- An antagonist's effect is the effect of REMOVING the transmitter's action - is that nothing?
- Consider what happens to breathing when the opioid's action is suddenly stripped away.
Show the answer
False
Why
False. An antagonist has a powerful effect precisely by removing the opioid's action - naloxone can reverse life-threatening respiratory depression within seconds. Equating 'does not activate the receptor' with 'no effect' is the classic antagonist pitfall.
Practise Neurotransmitters
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