Disuse supersensitivity, also pharmacological disuse supersensitivity or pharmacological denervation supersensitivity, is the increased sensitivity by a postsynaptic cell because of decreased input by incoming axons, e.g., due to the exposure to an

antagonist An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the chief foe of the protagonist. Etymology The English word antagonist comes from the Greek ἀνταγωνιστής – ''antagonistēs'', "opponent, competitor, villain, enemy, riv ...

drug A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via insuffla ...

. Jaffe and Sharpless pointed out that

withdrawal syndrome Drug withdrawal, drug withdrawal syndrome, or substance withdrawal syndrome, is the group of symptoms that occur upon the abrupt discontinuation or decrease in the intake of pharmaceutical or recreational drugs. In order for the symptoms of wit ...

after the cessation of a chronically-used drug often shows an exaggerated response which is normally suppressed by the drug which produced a dependence. They suggested the model according to which a drug has both

excitatory In neuroscience, an excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) is a postsynaptic potential that makes the postsynaptic neuron more likely to fire an action potential. This temporary depolarization of postsynaptic membrane potential, caused by the ...

and depressive effects. Depressive effects generate

hypersensitivity Hypersensitivity (also called hypersensitivity reaction or intolerance) refers to undesirable reactions produced by the normal immune system, including allergies and autoimmunity. They are usually referred to as an over-reaction of the immune s ...

, but at the same time they mask it. When drug usage stops, hypersensitivity becomes unmasked.''Drug Addiction I: Morphine, Sedative/Hypnotic and Alcohol Dependence'', Springer Science & Business Media, 2013,
p. 636
/ref>

References

{{reflist Peripheral nervous system

See also

References