Neuronal Nicotinic Receptor Subtypes: DEFINING THERAPEUTIC TARGETS

Subtypes of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors present in brain, autonomic ganglia, and the neuromuscular junction. Compounds designed to preferentially activate the given subtypes are discussed in the text. The anatomical locations are based on agonist-induced physiological responses. “Effects” given in green represent the beneficial actions of nicotinic receptor agonists, whereas “effects” in red represent undesirable actions or side effects. The colorcoding of receptor subunits does not represent actual subunit stoichiometry within given receptor type. (CTZ, chemoreceptor trigger zone.)