the.com/receptors
cellular bouncers deciding which molecules get past the velvet rope.
means proteins on or in cells that recognize specific molecules and trigger a response when they bind.
from from latin recipere, to receive; the concept crystallized in the 1900s when paul ehrlich imagined cells with side-chains that only certain drugs or toxins could lock onto, like a key finding its groove.
shape rulesbinding depends on 3d fit, not just chemistry
drug designmost medicines just flatter or fool a receptor
olfactory receptorshumans have about 400 distinct smell types
desensitizationoverstimulated receptors literally hide themselves inside cells