Succinylcholine
AnectinePubChem CID 5314 · 3D model
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Jams the same on-switch acetylcholine normally flips to fire a muscle, so the muscle can't reset and briefly goes limp — kicking in within about a minute and wearing off within several, which is why it's used to relax the airway for breathing-tube placement.
How it works
Succinylcholine works by flooding the same switch acetylcholine normally flips to make a muscle contract — but unlike acetylcholine, the body can't clear it away quickly at that junction, so the switch stays jammed on. A muscle can't fire again while its switch is stuck, so after a brief flicker of twitching, it goes fully limp. That paralysis kicks in within about a minute and wears off within several minutes on its own, as the drug is slowly broken down elsewhere in the blood — fast on, fast off, which is exactly why it's used to briefly paralyze the airway muscles during intubation.
What it’s used for
Used during surgery and emergency airway procedures to briefly and completely relax the muscles, most often to make it easier and safer to place a breathing tube.
- Mechanism
- Depolarizing neuromuscular blocker (nicotinic ACh receptor agonist)
- Drug class
- Small molecule
- Therapeutic area
- CNS / Anesthesia