Opioids: Morphine, Heroin (Smack) and the Poppy Plant
Biology · Human Health and Diseases · NEET
Opioids are drugs that bind to opioid receptors in your brain and gut. Morphine is a strong painkiller taken from the latex of the poppy plant Papaver somniferum, and heroin (called "smack") is diacetylmorphine, made by acetylation of morphine. Memory hook: Poppy latex to Morphine to (add acetyl) Heroin/Smack, all slow the body down.
Opioid flow chart: the latex of the poppy plant (Papaver somniferum) gives morphine (a painkiller); acetylation of morphine gives heroin, also called smack (diacetylmorphine). Both act on opioid receptors in the CNS and gut.
Your doubts, answered
From which part of the poppy plant is smack (heroin) obtained?
From the LATEX. NCERT says morphine is extracted from the latex of the poppy plant Papaver somniferum, and heroin (smack) is made from morphine. So the answer is latex, NOT roots, flowers or leaves. This exact question came in NEET 2018.
How is heroin synthesised from morphine?
By ACETYLATION of morphine. That is why heroin is chemically called diacetylmorphine. Remember: acetyl added to morphine gives di-ACETYL-morphine. It is not methylation, glycosylation or nitration (NEET 2019 tested this).
What is the chemical name of heroin / what is diacetylmorphine also called?
Heroin, commonly called smack, is chemically diacetylmorphine. It is a white, odourless, bitter, crystalline compound. So diacetylmorphine = heroin = smack (NEET 2023 Phase 2).
What is the source plant of morphine and its scientific name?
Morphine comes from the opium poppy, scientific name Papaver somniferum. Do not confuse it with Erythroxylum coca (that gives cocaine) or Cannabis sativa (that gives marijuana). Matching drug to plant is a common NEET match-the-column question.
Is morphine a stimulant or a depressant, and what is it used for?
Morphine is a depressant, not a stimulant. It is a very effective sedative and painkiller, useful in patients after surgery. Heroin is also a depressant and slows down body functions. (Cocaine is the stimulant that gives euphoria.)
Where do opioids act in the body?
Opioids bind to specific opioid receptors present in the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) and the gastrointestinal tract. Because they act on the CNS, they slow body functions and relieve pain.
⚠️ The NEET trap ✗ Heroin is a painkiller and morphine is a depressant that slows the body. ✓ Morphine is the effective sedative and painkiller; heroin (smack) is the depressant that slows down body functions. In match questions: Morphine to Painkiller/Sedative, Heroin to Slows body function. 🧠 Both come from the poppy, but only MORPHINE is the medicine painkiller. Heroin = smack = the depressant. Swapping these two is the trap NTA repeats every year.
Real NEET questions
NEET 2018
Which part of poppy plant is used to obtain the drug "Smack"?
A · Roots
B · Latex ✓
C · Flowers
D · Leaves
Solution: Smack is heroin (diacetylmorphine), made from morphine. NCERT states morphine is extracted from the LATEX of the poppy plant Papaver somniferum. So the correct part is latex, not roots, flowers or leaves.
NEET 2019
Drug called 'Heroin' is synthesized by
A · methylation of morphine
B · acetylation of morphine ✓
C · glycosylation of morphine
D · nitration of morphine
Solution: Heroin (smack), chemically diacetylmorphine, is produced by ACETYLATION of morphine. Morphine itself comes from the latex of the opium poppy Papaver somniferum. Methylation, glycosylation and nitration are wrong; NCERT specifically names acetylation.
NEET 2024
Match List I with List II. A. Cocaine B. Heroin C. Morphine D. Marijuana | I. Effective sedative in surgery II. Cannabis sativa III. Erythroxylum IV. Papaver somniferum
A · A-I, B-III, C-II, D-IV
B · A-II, B-I, C-III, D-IV
C · A-III, B-IV, C-I, D-II ✓
D · A-IV, B-III, C-I, D-II
Solution: Cocaine is from Erythroxylum coca (A-III). Heroin is acetylated morphine from Papaver somniferum (B-IV). Morphine is an effective sedative and painkiller used after surgery (C-I). Marijuana is from Cannabis sativa (D-II). Correct match: A-III, B-IV, C-I, D-II.
Solved Human Health and Diseases NEET PYQs
Try the real previous-year questions from this chapter — each with the answer and a full solution.
What is the difference between morphine and heroin?
Both are opioids from the poppy Papaver somniferum. Morphine is extracted from the latex and is used as a sedative and painkiller. Heroin (smack) is diacetylmorphine, made by acetylation of morphine, and is an abused depressant that slows body functions.
Why is heroin called smack?
'Smack' is the common street name for heroin. Chemically it is diacetylmorphine, a white, odourless, bitter crystalline compound, usually taken by snorting or injection.
What are opioid receptors?
Opioid receptors are specific receptors present in the central nervous system and the gastrointestinal tract. Opioid drugs like morphine and heroin bind to these receptors to produce their effects.
Is morphine banned for NEET-level students to know its medical use?
For NEET you must know morphine is a legal, useful medicine: a very effective sedative and painkiller for patients after surgery. It becomes drug abuse only when taken for non-medicinal reasons or in harmful amounts.
Which plant gives morphine and heroin?
The opium poppy, Papaver somniferum. Its latex is the source of morphine, and heroin is chemically derived from morphine.
