Actual Unit 2 Flashcards
Main Types of Antidepressants
Barbiturates
Benzodiazepines
Anxiolytic / Downer
Recreational drugs of abuse that produce a relaxing (usually good) feeling
-anti-anxiety
Anxiogenic
Opposite of anxiolytic, causes anxiety
Anticonvulsants / Sedative-Hypnotics
Sedating, sleepy, ect.
-Sleeping pills
-Date rape drugs - Cause unconsciousness and amnesia
-“Truth serum” - Causes mental errors and makes person easy to suggestion
-Can stop or prevent seizures
GABA’s Effect in the Brain
Typical depressant drugs are modulators, binding at receptors, helping GABA inhibit neurons by allowing more Cl- (chloride) into the cell
-GABA-A receptor subtype
-Made of 5 proteins (subunits)
-Arranged like flower petals
-GABA-A receptor has multiple binding sites.
Benzodiazepines
GABA-A Modulators
-Change shape of receptor, making it easier for GABA to bind to it
-Safer, they’re Sched. IV
-Main medication for anxiety disorders now
-Discovered accidentally
-OD very rare but still risky (when driving or mixing with other substances)
Side effect of benzos
-Teratogens (birth defects)
-Cognitive impairments (loopy, foggy mind)
-Not very good for elders to take
-Sedatives (bad for driving)
-Poor interaction with other drugs
GHB (Gamma-hydroxybutyrate)
A neurotransmitter, an active metabolite of GABA that normally is present in the brain in lower quantities than what people abuse
-Sch I
-Used to poison people
-Odorless, colorless, and dissolves easily in liquids
-Usually in the form of sodium GHB (salty, not easily detected)
-Is an agonist at a GABA-B receptor
-Metabolized and excreted quickly: 1-4 hours effect, 24 hours in the system
-Nicknamed “Liquid ecstasy” when powder is dissolved into a liquid
GHB “Liquid ecstasy” Effects
High dose: Depressant effects
Low Dose: Alcohol w/out the hangover: euphoria and feelings of higher sex drive and social positivity
“Odd” GHB actions
Through a non-GABA action, GHB increases the production of human growth hormone (hGH)
-used as a performance-enhancing drug
-treat the sleep disorder narcolepsy
-at low doses to prevent alcohol cravings
Types of Anxiety Disorders
-Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) - a person has excessive anxiety or worry more days than not, touching many different aspects of their life
-Specific Phobias
-Panic Disorder
-Social Anxiety Disorder
-Anxiety from other disorders (depression, PTSD, OCD, substance abuse, ect)
Preferred anxiety treatment
Benzodiazepines
Healthy Sleep
Stage 3 and 4 - Very deep sleep, with slow breathing and heart rate, and they can be very difficult to wake up.
Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep - INC brain activity and breathing rate, and the sleeper may have their most vivid dreams.
-REM sleep is important when people are sleep deprived, their next night of sleep features a lot of REM.
REM Rebound
Brain almost demanding you catch up on REM sleep after not having it
Z-Drugs
Best known modern sleeping pill.
-Work like benzodiazepines w/ different chemical structure (called benzodiazepine agonists).
-Zolpidem (Ambien®) and eszopiclone (Lunesta®). AKA Z-drugs.
Halcion® and Restoril®
Used to treat insomnia
-Only meant to be used for 7-10 days, because of addiction liability, and their negative effects on REM.
Other Sleep Medications
Ramelteon (Rozerem®) affects melatonin.
-Better at restoring normal sleep cycling than GABA-acting drugs
-People also take antihistamines (such as Benadryl®), because they are available over the counter, but these too can interfere with REM sleep.
Antidepressants as Anti-convulsants
Valproate, valproic acid, topiramate, and carbamazepine are used to prevent seizures. Benzodiazepines and barbiturates are also used (risk of tolerance and dependence).
Depressant Interactions
Depressants amplify the effects of other depressants.
-Adding a 2nd (or 3rd) depressant onto one can turn mild sedation into a stupor
-Confusion, intoxication, severe motor slowing, and incoordination
-Sleep into unconsciousness, coma, or death.
Depressant Abuse and Addiction
-It is said that barbiturates are more desirable than benzos
-Sedative, Hypnotic, or Anxiolytic Use Disorder in the DSM 5
-Tolerance and physical dependance
-Used to ween someone off of another drug
Depressant Withdrawal
-Benzo and Barb can be fatal
-Agitation, twitching, shaking, oversensitivity of the senses, and psychosis, convulsions or death
-Present in alcohol withdrawal because of its effect on the GABA-A receptor
Depressant OD
BARB:
-Inhibition of the brain to the point breathing is suppressed
-Spike during WWII and famous celebrity deaths
Benzos (more rare):
-Being more risky with benzos because of their perceived safety
-Most safe when taken ALONE
Euthanasia and depressants
-Death penalty, animal mercy killing, and physician assisted suicide
-Use of barbiturates, pancuronium, and potassium chloride to anesthetize people.
-Thiopental was the barbiturate used until Europe, the country who best produced it, stopped making it after outlawing the death penalty. This leads to the US trying to get it from questionable sources and few doctors who would use it.
Depressants and Interrogations, the “truth serum”
Depressants used to be used during interrogations, but it turns out that there are no drugs that will make someone tell the truth, only those that make people extremely suggestive.
-1960s drugs were banned for use during interrogation
Date Rape Drugs
Roofies, Ketamine, Alcohol, and GHB. Roofies:
-Unconsciousness and amnesia
-Sched. IV
-Rohypnol turns blue in a drink (ON BRAND)
-Odorless and tasteless
-Takes effect in 15-20 minutes, lasting 4-6 hours
-Can be detected in urine for 72 hours or more, depending on the dose and other factors
First Generation Antipsychotics
Dopamine receptor antagonists
-Typical antipsychotics
-Can cause Parkinson’s like syndromes (Tardive Dyskinesia and Extrapyramidal Syndrome (EPS) aka Thorazine shuffle)
-Brain Atrophy and Disorganization
DA Hypothesis
Antipsychotics antagonize the D2 receptors.
-Not as a simple dopamine imbalance.
-Antipsychotics can take weeks to take effect despite blocking receptors in minutes
-Ventricles and sulci in the brain are larger in those with SCZ. In the hippocampus, there is a lot of cell misconnection.
Second Generation Antipsychotics
serotonin-dopamine antagonists
-Atypical antipsychotics (esp 5-HT2A)
-Less parkinson syndrome
-Less neg symp
-Dirty drug (blocking positive symptoms as well)
Side effects of 2nd generation antipsychotics
-Agranulocytosis - Drop white blood cells
-Weight gain and metabolic issues
*Child obesity and gynecomastia issues
-Stroke (giving it a black box warning)
-TD and akathisia (can’t sit)
-Suicide
-Abnormal heart rhythm
Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)
Sadness, hopelessness, guilt, worthlessness, anhedonia, and/or lack of energy
-More understood
-Negative views
-Anhedonia - Lack of pleasurable feelings
-Sleep and eating problems
-Lack of motivation
-Suicidal thoughts or actions
Monoamine Hypothesis
Depletion in the levels of SA, norepinephrine, and/or DA in the CNS
-Cause diet restriction
SSRIs
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors
SNRIs
Serotonin–norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor
Benefits and side effects of taking depression medication
-40-50% symptom reduction, 30-40% with placebo
-Also used for anxiety, OCD, PTSD, and pain
-Suicidal thoughts
-Sexual dysfunction
-Withdrawal
Bipolar Disorder
Cycles of mania
-Lithium treatment
-Anticonvulsants
-Atypical antipsychotics
Parkinson’s disease
Neurodegenerative Disorder
-L-Dopa, dopamine agonists
Alzheimer’s Disease
Neurodegenerative Disorder
-Block cholinesterase enzyme
Opium
derivative, coming from poppy plants
-Called “joy plant”
-Synthetic and semisynthetic drugs
-Sched. III
-Plant has a milky resin that can be dried
Opiates
Psychoactive chemicals that grow naturally in a certain kind of poppy plant (papaver somniferum)
Opioids
All drugs that act the way that opium does
-Includes synthetic drugs such as fentanyl
-Agonists that mimic the natural effects of endorphins
4 Chemicals present in opium
Morphine (15% of dried opium)
Can cause a positive drug test if consuming poppy seeds
Codeine (1-3% of dried opium)
Thebaine - Has a similar enough chemical structure to morphine that it is used as a precursor when making opioid drugs
Papaverine - Used medicinally as a muscle relaxant for certain conditions
Semisynthetic Opioids
Made by modifying the chemical structure of morphine, codeine, or thebaine. Heroine is most commonly known.
-Oxycodon
Synthetic Opioids
Not made by altering the structure of natural opiates.
-Fentanyl
-Methadone
Pharmacodynamics of Opioids
Opioids are agonists at the μ (mu) endorphin (or opioid) receptor.
-Delta (𝜹) and Kappa (𝟆)
Endorphines
Keys to opioid receptors
Opioid antagonists
The mu receptor can be blocked by antagonists:
-Naloxone and naltrexone.
-Are used to reverse overdose and are also part of strategies to decrease abuse.
Effects of Opioids
Euphoria
Pain killing
Warmth
Nausea and vomiting
Respiratory and cough suppression (possibly fatal)
Constipation
Sensorimotor depression
Itching
Diarrhea
Analgesia
Causing you to not feel pain
-Opioid receptors in the spinal cord
-Doesn’t work against neuropathic pain (damage to NS)
Signs of opioid abuse
-Sensorimotor Depression - DEC response and coordination
-Pinhole pupils in the eyes - Particularly when it’s dark and one would expect wide pupils
-Weight loss - appetite suppression
-Tracks or Track Marks - Bruises or scabs along veins from repeated injection due to the injection itself
*Opposite arm of dominant
*Long sleeves to cover
Patterns of abuse in US
Use and abuse pre-date the Revolutionary War, and have been a major issue since the late 1800s.
-The 1990s saw the introduction of prescription painkiller tablets such as Oxycontin® (oxycodone), Vicodin® (hydrocodone and acetaminophen), and Percocet® (oxycodone and acetaminophen).
Overprescribing Pain Killers
-Aggressive marketing from pharmaceutical companies
-Bonuses for Drs prescribing them
-Pain is 5th vital sign
-Tried to say they’re less addictive than older pain killers, causing Oxytocin to lose millions
Opioid Diversion
Made for medical purpose and diverted into illegal uses
-Oxycodone or hydrocodone pills
-Fentanyl
-Cough syrups
-FDA approved opioids
Abuse-Deterrent Formulations (ADFs)
Crush resistant coating (people are persistent)
-Mu opioid receptor antagonist in the tablet
*Very little is absorbed if taken correctly
Works well but…
-DEC leveled off
-Some users switched to heroin or fentanyl
-Some opioid painkillers are still not ADFs, and are still commonly abused via faster ROA
Fentanyl ROA and facts
Slower ROA: A transdermal patch (Duragesic®), a lollipop (lozenge on a stick, called Actiq®), or sublingual pill (Abstral® or Fentora®) or spray (Subsys®), or nasal spray (Lazanda®)
Faster ROA: (sublingually, intranasal, or injected), it can take effect in a few minutes, and its effects last one or two hours.
-It is used as a painkiller, especially in terminal cancer patients, and to help with anesthesia.
Fentanyl facts
-Was popularly made in China now Mexico
-so cheap suppliers are pressing illegally made fentanyl into pills to look like other diverted opioids
-Schedule II, but its analogues are Schedule I
-“China White” nickname
Abuse of Heroine over the years
-Made from changing morphine’s chemical structure in 1874 and was legally sold between 1898-1910.
-The 1914 Harrison Act restricted heroin use in the US but was banned in 1925 (Necessary to pay tax to make)
-Turkey (French Connection movie) was a main source until the 1970s.
Opium Regions
-Afghanistan (along with a small part of neighboring Pakistan and Iran, it is called the “Golden Crescent)
-Burma, and the Golden Triangle (SE Asia - Vietnam, Lous, and Neimbar), although this region does not supply much heroin to the US
-Mexico and Colombia.
Mexico is #1 US supplier
Heroine Facts
-Another name for heroin is diacetylmorphine (or diamorphine)
-Lipophilic but does not bind well to the mu receptors
-often added to marijuana, or placed on a flat surface and heated from underneath until smoke rises from the drug
*Chasing the dragon
-Use of heroin has gone up since 2007. The number of first time users has doubled since then. Use in rural and suburban areas is becoming more common.
Opioid Use Disorder
Treatment and drug-related death have also increased. In the past 6-7 years, there is a decrease in minor use of heroin.
Kratom
In southeast Asia, the kratom tree has leaves with unique psychoactive drugs
-spiritual and medical purposes
-Dirty drug
-At low doses, it is a stimulant but is similar to opium at larger doses
-In Malaysia and Thailand, it is used to fight fatigue, and to treat opioid dependence, but has been abused in recent years
Opioid OD
-Respiration suppression
-Potency depends on purity
-Tolerance builds QUICK
-If OD is reversed, react very negatively, in the most intense withdraw very irritable and angry
Operation Golden Flow and the Importance of Environmental Context
Civil war, heavy morphine use amongst soldiers, soldiers disease. Golden triangle heavy opium and methadone presence. When a heroin user in Vietnam moves back to the States, the drug-related environment stays behind. The culture, the availability, the people they would associate with (both American and local), the routine of buying and using, not to mention the war, were all replaced with a completely different way of life.
Treatment for opioid addiction
Replacement Therapy
-Methadone - Synthetic opioid
*clinics usually also offer services like counseling, job placement, and pregnancy care. Clients are drug tested to detect other substance problems.
-Buprenorphine - Partial agonist
Stimulant
A drug that arouses the CNS to promote alertness, increase heart rate, and fight drowsiness and fatigue.
-All stimulants are sympathomimetic
Sympathomimetic
Activates SNS
Sensitization
When some drug effects get stronger the more a person takes them
Ergogenic
Creates energy, allowing you to do work
Cocaine Facts
1.87M past month cocaine/crack users
-Perceived safety is pretty consistent
-0.1% of 8th graders and 0.8% of 12th graders reported past-month cocaine use in 2020
Coca leaves produce cocaine, probably as a natural pesticide, because it causes fatal hyperactivity of octopamine, a neurotransmitter in insects that is similar to norepinephrine in
other animals.
Comes from coca leaves in Peru, Bolivia, and Columbia.
-Used by locals by chewing for a high, stimulation, and altitude sickness.
-Was originally banned by Europe, but was changed.
Forms of Cocaine
Coca leaves - Chewed or made into tea
↓
Coca paste - Often smoked w/ tobacco or marijuana
Cheaper and more common in areas w/ lower SES
↓
Cocaine - Powder, salt, hydrochloride. Usually snorted or dissolved in water and injected via IV
↓ +Addition of baking soda or something similar
Crack Cocaine / Freebase Cocaine - Smokable. Crack is most common
Cocaine Actions and Effects
Monoamine (dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin) reuptake blocker
-Most common ROA is insufflation
-sedating, relaxed euphoria, the high from cocaine is accompanied by feelings of confidence and alertness.
-DEC hunger and fatigue
-INC sex drive
-INC heart rate, sweating, and dilated pupils
Cocaine as a local anesthetic
Blocks conduction of nerve impulses in a manner that is different from how it blocks reuptake. Because it can stop action potentials that are sending a pain message to the brain, it is a local anesthetic.
Pharmacokinetics of Cocaine
When snorted, effects last about 30 minutes, but are delayed by about 5 minutes.
-Sched. II
-Smoking and injection are quicker, but only lasts 5-10 minutes.
-Life is an hour but its metabolites last longer in the body.
-When mixed with alcohol, the liver combines the two drugs to form octamethylene(at least twice more dangerous than cocaine) (Bad for cardiovascular system)
Negative Effects of Cocaine
Cardiovascular dangers
Overheating
Seizures
Panic attacks
Severe agitation / irritability
Sensitization (INC) paranoia, psychosis
Damage to nasal mucosa
Adulterants / diluents
-Speedball
Legality and History of Cocaine
-Made Sched. II on the Controlled Substances Act in 1970 by congress
-The Harrison Tax act of 1914 made it mostly illegal
- 80s, cocaine salt was known as a party drug amongst upper classes, poorer classes by 85
-Crack had an 80% pureness VS the 55% cocaine salt had
-Cheap doses, causing a major cocaine addiction, spiking cocaine related emergency room visits and related crime between 1984-87
-Fair Sentencing Act passed in 2010 to prevent racial disparity in sentencing and arrests
International Efforts and the Coca Fields
US resorting to drastic measures to destroy coca fields, including burning and spraying herbicide (often glyphosate, or Roundup), usually from aircraft.
This weakened paramilitary groups, which majorly contributed to drug cartels. Criticisms:
-treatment of addicts was more effective
-environmental concerns and children getting sick
-impact on indigenous folks
*Religious and small usage, sickness, and poor farmers who depend on growing coca
Cocaine addiction treatment
-Help with cravings and depression
-Counseling, group therapy, ect
-Rewards for staying clean
-Vaccine, which would help the body break cocaine down into inactive metabolites before entering the brain
*Block cocaine’s effect on dopamine
-Disulfiram (Antabuse®), a treatment for alcoholism, seems to also help in cocaine addiction
*Benefit may come from blocking the body’s ability to convert dopamine into norepinephrine.
-Repeated transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
-Benzodiazepines or adrenergic drugs like beta blockers.
Amphetamine
Has a similar action (effect) to cocaine
-Oral ROA, giving a longer lasting and more easily controlled effect.
-Half life is 9-14 hours.
-INC medical uses.
-Amphetamine is synthetic, having been invented in 1887 and first used medically in the 1930s.
-Sched. II
-Similar to meth
Amphetamine-Like Drugs
Ephedra and khat are plants that naturally contain stimulants
-Used to fight hunger and fatigue, and for their stimulant and euphoric effects.
-Amphetamine also used to repress hunger and treat ADHD
Action and Effects of Amphetamines and like-drugs
-Stop the reuptake of DA, also reversing the reuptake pumps, putting more DA in the synapse
-INC HR and pupil dilation
-30s and ‘40s, including World War II, amphetamine and methamphetamine were prescribed for sleep disorders, and to soldiers and others who needed to fight off fatigue and sleepiness for long periods
-Treating narcolepsy
-Appetite suppression
-Improvement in some cognitive areas
Medicating ADHD
At low to moderate doses, stimulants can enhance attention, and the ability to focus,
-Cost of impairing the ability to divide attention, and may cause more impulsivity
-Too high a dose, and the user may feel alert and confident, but will have cognitive impairments, not improvements
-Can cause insomnia if effects last too long
Yerkes-Dodson Law and using stimulants to treat ADHD
Cognition is at peak when energy and alertness are at peak.
Amphetamine Forms
The same molecule, but mirror images, like hands:
-Levoamphetamine
Left hand
Sympathomimetic effect
-Dextroamphetamine
Right hand
A little more potent when it comes to psychological effects
-Mixed together, it is called a racemic mixture
Nootropics
Cognitive Enhancers
-Used for success (INC attention, less boring studying)
Misuse of stimulants
-Prescription stimulants are misused almost as much as cocaine is used in the US.
-Up to 9% of high school students, and 35% of college students have reported using non prescription stimulants.
-29% of stimulant takers have been asked by someone to take their pills.
Ephedrine
Natural amphetamine-like chemical that grows in ephedra, also known as ma huang
-Traditional Chinese medication
-Induce sweating and help with asthma symptoms
-Now increase energy and cut appetite
-Fight hunger and fatigue, improve focus, and increase self-confidence
-Taken as performance-enhancing drugs in sports
Negative effects of amphetamines and stimulants
-Can lead to dependence with a withdrawal syndrome
-Amphetamine psychosis
*paranoia and hallucinations
*Closest artificial schz experience brought on by drugs
-Bruxism, or teeth-grinding, is a common problem. *It is believed to contribute to “meth mouth,” which is poor dental health in people who use meth
*Can be sign of drug use
*Can mean so many other things as well
-Stunted growth
-Negative appetite impact
-Toxic to brain cells
*Axon terminal
Meth
Faster onset, longer lasting effects
-All ROA
-12 Hour half life
-Can metabolize into amphetamines
-Illegal since 1950s
*Use of ergogenic properties
*Pharmacological violence
*Environmental risks
*Fire / Explosion / Risk of inhaling or ingesting chemicals
-Taken to get high, stay awake longer and work harder, partying and fights
-Those w/ past violence, likely to be violent while using
Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act (2005)
Pseudoephedrine
Need ID, limits on daily or monthly purchase
2% of HS students weer regular meth users in 2000
New supply in Mexico
Overdose, treatment, and positive tests rising
Meth Effects
Similar to amphetamine
Compulsive behavior
Stronger toxicity
Harder to break down
Cathinone
Found in khat plant
-Chewed by adults in the area
-Methcathinone (cat)
-Mephedrone (meow meow)
-MDPV (bath salts)
Not bubble bath salts
*Psychosis, aggression, and overdose
*Some media sensationalization (eating face???)
*Still dangerous, just avoid individual stories
Hallucinogen
Drugs taken because they alter how people’s perception
-Most are dirty drugs
-The 5-HT2A and 5-HT2C subtypes of serotonin receptors seem to be most important; the more a drug activates (i.e., is an agonist at) those receptors, the stronger the psychedelic experience.
Hallucination
A perception of something that does not exist
-Experienced as a real thing, and may involve any or all of their senses
-Common milder effects, such as more vibrant colors, distorted dimensions of physical objects, or odd sounds that seem to come from nowhere
*Not considered hallucinations because they either involve changes to real objects, or are not of a high enough quality where the person believes they are real
-Some drugs have stronger hallucinations at higher doses
Psychedelics
(mind-expanding) drugs that changes in peoples’ viewpoints, or understanding of themselves and the world around them.
-Altered states of consciousness, where users are mentally cut off from the external world, and believe they are in a different realm of existence
Empathogens or Entactogens
Drugs promoting feelings of relatedness, compassion, desire to be close to others, and positive emotions toward the user and others
-Mescaline and DMT used in religious ceremonies
Entheogen
Drugs taken to induce spiritual experiences
MDMA
Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, known as ecstasy, E, X, or molly) -
-Blocks reuptake of norepinephrine and dopamine, so it is a stimulant.
-Effects on serotonin system
similar to mephedrone and other bath salts
-Not natural, made pharmaceutically
MDMA Usage
-Sched. I
-Popular recreational use during the 70s via tablet (ex ecstasy)
-80s & 90s popularized through raves, dance parties where “rolling” (ecstasy use) was common
-Lace concern leads to INC Molly use
-Taken orally, effect in 45-60 minutes
-last 3 to 6 hours
-Tiredness, crash, negative mood up to three days after
MDMA Usage
-Sched. I
-Popular recreational use during the 70s via tablet (ex ecstasy)
-80s & 90s popularized through raves, dance parties where “rolling” (ecstasy use) was common
-Lace concern leads to INC Molly use
-Taken orally, effect in 45-60 minutes
-last 3 to 6 hours
-Tiredness, crash, negative mood up to three days after
MDMA effects
-Causes euphoria, well-being, and stimulant effects, as well as wakefulness and self-confidence
-Feelings of innocence and childlike wonder, inner peace, positive emotionality, and a desire to bond socially with others
-Heightened senses, especially touch
Bad MDMA effects
-Cause teeth grinding, insomnia, racing heartbeat, irritability, overheating, and dehydration
*Overheating and dehydration possibly from environment which it is used
*MDMA may help the hypothalamus secrete a hormone that slows the production of urine
-May damage axon terminals of serotonin cells, but this damage may be reversible if the person stops using, and suggests there may be less damage with lower doses
-Possible correlation with damage to serotonin cells and likeliness of developing a mental disorder later in life
MDMA history and use
MDMA was invented in 1912, and used to make other drugs to stop bleeding
-Alexander Shulgin discovered the effects, promoted its use for psychotherapy (grieving)
-MAPS - Organization doing research on use of psychedelics
*Studies on use with social anxiety and autism and PTSD
STP and 2C-B
STP, also called DOM, was popular in the 1960s and ‘70s, and its effects are described similar to MDMA, but longer onset, longer lasting, and with a stronger psychedelic experience
2C-B is part of a family of drugs that are chemically similar to amphetamine, but also have serotonin activity, and so produce powerful, long-lasting psychedelic experiences
MDA
Slightly more psychedelic and less stimulating than MDMA
-active metabolite of MDMA, so part of the psychedelic effects of the second drug are because it is converted into the first
LSD (Acid)
Stronger serotonin 5-HT2A receptor agonists (may be due to INC connection between brain areas)
-lysergic acid diethylamide
Alber Hofmann
Switz scientists doing drug discovery
-Ergot fungus (from grown on rye bread) ingested causes ergotism (St. Anthony’s fire)
LSD Usage
-ROA is usually oral.
-Effects start after 30-45 minutes, lasting up to 8 hours or more
-Dose is 1/20 to ¼ of a milligram, and users can feel effects as low as 0.02 mg, or 20 micrograms
-Liquid solution of LSD is put onto blotter paper and cut into small squares
*put into sugar cubes or gelatin
25I-NBOMe
Extremely potent drug thought to be LSD able to be OD
LSD use rates
Steady increase in past-year (3.9% in 2020) and past-month (1.4%) use in 12th graders but it is not nearly as high as it was in the 90s
LSD effects
-Hallucinations
-Synesthesia - a mixing of experiences across senses (Colors with sounds)
-Bizarre behaviors and beliefs, often involving associations that do not usually go together
-Changing a person’s viewpoint on themselves, their relationships, and the world, often as part of powerful entheogenic (spiritual) experiences
Adverse LSD effects
-Bad trip (possibly from too high dose)
-Experience flashbacks, in which they relive effects of the drug weeks, months, or even years after taking it
*Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder - Severely distressed or have impaired functioning due to the flashbacks
Affects 4.2% of hallucinogen users
No established treatment and No idea of why
Tachyphylaxis
A rapid tolerance that lasts for a few days
-Water soluble, does not stay in body after effects are over
-High TI, low chance of OD and addiction
MKULTRA
A set of experiments involving LSD use and other drug and non-drug activities.
-Formal use during interrogations
-Stopped in 70s after being given to people w/o permission
-CIA tried to cover up Frank Olsen’s LSD suicide from not-permitted drug use
-ADVERSE effect when people don’t know they’re taking it / don’t want to
-US VS Stanley - sued the government for being given LSD without his knowledge
*Government admits they did it but claim soldiers can’t sue the government everytime they get hurt, Stanley lost his damages
-Orlikow VS US - Orlikow w/ severe depression in a psychiatric facility. CIA contracted the hospital to give patients LSD and were sued. Orlikow won.
Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert (Ram Dass)
Former psychologist and colleague fired for violating research ethics (such as by pressuring students to take psychedelics) and conducting poorly controlled studies on their benefits.
-Leary would became major figures in the ‘60s counterculture, promoting use of psychedelics for spiritual purposes -“turn on, tune in, drop out”
Mushrooms (Psilocybin)
Active ingredient converted into the active metabolite psilocin
-5-HT2A and 5-HT2C
-Receptor agonist like LSD
-Visual hallucinations and distortions, and altered thinking
Shrooms Usage
Eaten, which produces effects within 30 minutes, lasting ~6hrs.
-Rapid tolerance, limiting how often people can use them
-Little to no potential for dependence
-Deemed as the recreational drug that caused the least harm to users
Peyote (Mescaline)
A cactus that grows in Mexico and parts of Texas that naturally produces
mescaline, a hallucinogen
-Sliced into 5 discs/buttons and chewed
-More intense, dry mouth, and nausea & vomiting
Peyote, religion, and law
State tried to ban Mescaline but the Peyote were able to get it to be legal for their religious use. Those using it for religious practices began to lose their jobs, fired under misconduct, for testing positive for mescaline.
-Can be made in a laboratory and taken as a pill or liquid.
-Became popular after the release of the book The Doors of Perception by Aldous Huxley in 1954
Pharmacodynamics and effects of mescaline
Similar chemical structure to MDMA but mescaline does not block reuptake of norepinephrine or dopamine.
-Is an agonist at the 5-HT2A serotonin receptor
-Can produce strong visual hallucinations and synesthesia
-Very intense and spiritual
-Known to cause nausea and vomiting, especially at the beginning of a trip
*Not due to the presence of the rat poison strychnine, either naturally or sprayed on
DMT
Dimethyltryptamine
-5-MeO-DMT (“5-methoxy-DMT”)
DMT use and effects
-Several natural resources (frog)
-More power (detaching) hallucinations
-Smoked, injected, or made into tea
-Taken with MAOI to prolong effect
-Effect happens and ends quickly
-Onset is almost immediate, and lasts 5 to 15 -minutes, with mild effects that last about another
15 minutes
Ayahuasca
Tea from S America - combines leaves or bark of plants containing DMT with a vine that contains harmine - Natural MAOI
DMT and the pineal gland
The pineal gland helps regulate sleep wake cycle
-Considered to be third eye
-No actual DMT production
Lysergic acid amide (LSA)
Drug similar to LSD naturally occurring in the seeds of morning glory flowers
25I-NBOMe / 25I / NBOMB
Close potency to LSD
-There are overdose deaths from NBOMe, especially from injecting, smoking, or snorting it
-Schedule I
Ego dissolution
A change to one’s sense of self
MDMA/mushrooms in psychotherapy
-Cluster headaches
-Ibogaine for alcholism
-Psychedelic tourism
Salvia
Hallucinogen similar to DMT
-Plant
-Can be smoked
-Kappa opioid agonist
-Produces a fast acting, quickly endured, change of consciousness
-Produces dysphoria
-Became banned by states
-Most don’t want to ever take it again (FEW regular users)
Disassociates
Disembodiment, perceptual changes, no pain
-NMDA glutamate antagonists
*Making memories
*Reality VS fantasy
Psychotomimetic
Produces a sort of psychosis
-Angel dust (PCP) - Known to cause violence
DXM - Robotripping
Dissociative anesthetic when taken at a really high does (Robitussin)
Ketamine
Best down dissociative
-Club drug - Taken for feeling
-Several ROA
-K-hole - Can’t feel body, in own world
-Known to cause suicide and self-harm
PCP
-Angel Dust, “embalming fluid”, wet
-Violence
