Biology GCSE: Opium

Which Plant produces it and why?

Latex is produced by the opium poppy that is in turn dried to form opium. Humans extract the latex from the plant by scratching, essentially cutting it, which allows the latex to seep out. The plant produces these chemicals as they have properties that are useful to the plant. Opium has a wide range of physiological effects on animals, toxic to some species of insects, which act as a feeding deterrent ensuring that they are able to protect themselves from predators and giving them increased chances of survival.

Where are these plants found around the World?

It is found in India and Burma. The opium poppy is native to these regions but due to trading in the late 19^th and 20^th Centuries the opium poppy also grows in Afghanistan, Mexico and Colombia. The actual origin is in Indo-China.

History of Opium

Ancient societies in India and Egypt to deal with diarrhoea which was a devastating illness as many people did not have a good supply of water and would die of dehydration and is still today the illness that causes the most deaths in the World. In the 1600s people began to use opium as a drug especially in China for recreational purposes but by 1729 became illegal in China. However everywhere else it is legal and even the British smuggled Opium into China to sell for huge profits. The Chinese Emperor had enough and in 1839 decided to confiscate and ban trade with Britain and France. This did not go down well with the British Government starting the Opium Wars. The British might strangled China into submission and regained trade and even received Hong Kong as a loan and only relinquished in 1997.  The drug was later banned in Britain and the US in the 20^th century.

What does the Opium Poppy contain?

It contains two types of alkaloids: one morphine, codeine and thebaine and the other are a group called Isoqinolines but these have no effects on organisms that consume it. Morphine is at around 13% of the opium and it is responsible for causing respiratory difficulties in mammals. Usually the largest amount of opium tolerated by mammals is about 2grams. The consumption of the opium leads to pain and constant leads to chronic pains. All of these chemicals together can even cause a coma or cardiac arrest. Not what a wild animal wants and the animals once having consumed it will remember never to eat that plant again.

Pharmaceutical Uses

Morphine, Codeine and Thebaine are extracted via the opium gum through several chemical processes. Morphine is probably the most well known used as a strong painkiller and part of another type of medicine. Codeine is also part of medicines that involve removal of pain (head, muscle, back etc.). Thebaine however does not have any medical use whatsoever. Although it is refined to create some of the strongest pain medication that we have to our disposal such as hydrocodone, oxycodone, hydromorphone, oxymorphone and others. Opiate painkillers are preferred to others since they are powerful, easy to produce and are a viable source of profits for companies.