Alkaloid

An alkaloid is a nitrogen-containing organic compound, usually basic and naturally occurring, that can have pronounced physiological effects in animals.

Nitrogen: A chemical element found in the amino groups and heterocyclic rings of many alkaloids. Its atoms give alkaloids their defining element and often their ability to act as bases.
Acetylcholine receptor: A membrane protein that responds to the neurotransmitter acetylcholine and regulates cellular signaling. Nicotine and several other alkaloids alter signaling through these receptors.
Morphine: A potent opioid alkaloid from opium poppy used to relieve severe pain. It is a major therapeutic alkaloid whose benefits and dependence risks illustrate the class's power.
Opium poppy: A flowering plant, Papaver somniferum, cultivated for opium and its medicinal compounds. Its latex contains morphine and related alkaloids that shaped medicine and trade.
Amino sugars: Monosaccharides in which a hydroxyl group is replaced by an amino group. They contain nitrogen but generally lack the basicity and characteristic animal effects associated with alkaloids.
Amine: An organic compound derived from ammonia by replacing one or more hydrogen atoms with carbon-containing groups. Many alkaloids contain amine groups that accept protons and influence biological activity.
Opioid receptor: A G-protein-coupled receptor that mediates effects of endogenous opioid peptides and opioid drugs. Morphine acts at these receptors, producing analgesia and other physiological effects.
Quinine: A bitter alkaloid from cinchona bark used to treat malaria. Its history shows how a plant alkaloid became a major antimalarial medicine.
Cinchona: A genus of South American trees whose bark contains quinine and related alkaloids. Its bark was the historic source of quinine and other quinoline alkaloids.
Glycoside: A compound in which a sugar is bonded to another chemical group through its anomeric carbon. Some alkaloids occur as glycosides, but glycosides form a broader class defined by sugar linkage.

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