What Are Receptor Agonists?
In biochemistry, agonists are any chemicals, including drugs, that show an affinity for a receptor on the cell membrane. Due to the affinity, the agonist can bind to the receptor and affect its activity within the cell. At the cellular level, receptors occur on the surface of the cell membrane and are usually an exposed part of a membrane protein. When a substance binds to a receptor, it causes a change in the receptor molecule, which can initiate or inhibit activity. Receptor agonists can either positively or negatively affect the activity of the receptor they bind to.
