Drugs
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The availability of radiolabelled ligands selective for various putative neurotransmitter receptor sites and the development of quantitative autoradiography has led to a greater understanding of the neuronal pathway and receptor subtypes involved in the vomiting reflex induced by various mechanisms both within the central nervous system and the periphery. Receptors for acetylcholine, dopamine, histamine and serotonin have been detected in a number of brain regions associated with the vomiting reflex, and provide a rational basis for the antiemetic action of drugs that inhibit receptor subtypes for these neurotransmitters. The basis of the antiemetic action of other drugs such as dexamethasone and the cannabinoids is still obscure. ⋯ Muscarinic and nicotinic agonists currently under investigation in Alzheimer's disease pose another therapeutic dilemma as emesis is due to a central action of these compounds. Several sites may be involved including the chemoreceptor trigger zone and frontal lobes. Opiates may act through dopamine receptors or mu-receptors on dopaminergic nerves, but serotonergic mechanisms may also be involved in the action of some opiates.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)