Explore the listed agonist spectrum and consider the action and receptor of each:
Agonist
Partial agonist
Antagonist
Inverse agonist
You will submit a concept map exploring the four agonists on the agonist spectrum (agonist, partial agonist, antagonist, and inverse agonist) in which you:
Describe the different characteristics of the four agonists and how each mediates distinct biological activities. Include proposed mechanisms and the receptor it is targeting.
Scavenge the literature after describing each agonist on the spectrum for research that is based on the medications in the table below.
Apply the medications to the appropriate agonist on the agonist spectrum in your Concept Map.
Medications
Oxycodone
Brexpiprazole
Haloperidol
Naloxone
Aripiprazole
Amphetamine
Risperidone
Pimavanserin
Sample solution
Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell.
In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.
God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.
Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.
To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.
References
Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.
Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.
Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.
Sample Answer
Sample Answer
Exploring the Agonist Spectrum in Pharmacology
Introduction
The field of pharmacology delves into the understanding of how different substances interact with the body’s receptors to produce various effects. Among the spectrum of agonists, including agonist, partial agonist, antagonist, and inverse agonist, each plays a unique role in modulating biological activities by targeting specific receptors. This concept map aims to delve into the characteristics of each agonist and how they mediate distinct biological activities, along with the medications associated with them.
Agonist
Characteristics:
– An agonist is a substance that binds to a receptor and activates it to produce a biological response.
– It mimics the action of endogenous ligands.
– Agonists can be full or partial, depending on the level of activation they induce.
Proposed Mechanism:
– Agonists bind to receptors and initiate a cascade of events leading to a cellular response.
– They can have varying affinities for receptors, impacting the magnitude of the response.
Medications:
– Oxycodone: Acts as an agonist at the mu-opioid receptor to provide pain relief.
Partial Agonist
Characteristics:
– A partial agonist binds to a receptor but only activates it to a moderate extent compared to a full agonist.
– It can act as an agonist or antagonist depending on the context.
Proposed Mechanism:
– Partial agonists bind to receptors and induce a partial response due to their intrinsic activity.
– They can compete with full agonists for receptor binding sites.
Medications:
– Brexpiprazole: Exerts partial agonist activity at serotonin 5-HT1A and dopamine D2 receptors.
Antagonist
Characteristics:
– An antagonist binds to a receptor without activating it, thereby blocking the action of agonists or inverse agonists.
– It inhibits the biological response that would typically occur upon receptor activation.
Proposed Mechanism:
– Antagonists compete with agonists for receptor binding sites without activating downstream signaling pathways.
– They can be competitive or non-competitive based on their mode of action.
Medications:
– Haloperidol: Functions as a dopamine D2 receptor antagonist in the treatment of psychotic disorders.
– Naloxone: Acts as a competitive antagonist at opioid receptors to reverse opioid overdose effects.
Inverse Agonist
Characteristics:
– An inverse agonist binds to a receptor and induces an opposite response to that of an agonist.
– It stabilizes the inactive conformation of the receptor, leading to decreased basal activity.
Proposed Mechanism:
– Inverse agonists reduce constitutive receptor activity by promoting an inhibitory effect.
– They are particularly relevant in receptors that exhibit basal activity in the absence of ligands.
Medications:
– Aripiprazole: Displays inverse agonist activity at serotonin 5-HT2A receptors.
– Risperidone: Acts as an inverse agonist at serotonin 5-HT2C receptors.
– Pimavanserin: Functions as an inverse agonist at serotonin 5-HT2A receptors for treating psychosis in Parkinson’s disease patients.
Conclusion
Understanding the nuances of agonists across the spectrum is crucial in pharmacology to develop targeted therapies and optimize treatment outcomes. By exploring how each agonist type interacts with specific receptors and modulates biological responses, researchers can continue to innovate in drug development and enhance patient care.
