1.
J Neuroimmunol
; 263(1-2): 35-42, 2013 Oct 15.
Artículo
en Inglés
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-23965172
RESUMEN
Opioids are irreplaceable for the treatment of severe pain. However, opioid-induced immunomodulation affects therapies. Here we report that treatment of human T lymphocytes with the opioids fentanyl, methadone, loperamide and beta-endorphin resulted in a strong induction of the cytokine interleukin-4. In contrast, morphine and buprenorphine induced markedly and significantly lower levels of interleukin-4 mRNA and protein. These findings suggest agonist-biased µ opioid receptor signaling in T cells. In the future, better knowledge about agonist-specific immunomodulatory effects of opioids offers the possibility to select drugs for a therapy with more favorable and/or less detrimental side effects in immune cells.