Acetylcholine receptors nerve agent binding

Atropine Sometimes used as an antidote for nerve agents. It inhibits the action of acetylcholine by binding to acetylcholine receptors. 

Curare mimics acetylcholine by binding to receptor at muscle synapses, preventing nerves from stimulating muscular contraction and causing death by respiratory paralysis. It is a neuromuscular nondepolarizing agent and a nicotinic antagonist. 

Acetylcholine is a neurohormone that enhances peristalsis, wakefulness, and memory and is essential for nerve transmission. A deficiency of brain cell receptors that bind acetylcholine—cholinergic receptors—contributes to the characteristic loss of memory in Alzheimer s disease. Cholinergic receptors are structurally similar to those that bind histamine. Therefore, antihistamines and cholinergic agents show overlapping activities. As a result, the antihistamine diphenhydramine has been used to treat insomnia and to combat motion sickness. 

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