Addiction: Explanations of nicotine addiction - Brain neurochemistry Flashcards
Name the neurotransmitter linked to addiction.
Dopamine
Name the brain areas linked to addiction.
Ventral Tegmental area
Nucleus accumbens
Pre- frontal cortex
Which receptors does nicotine attach to?
nACh
Or
nAChR
How long does nicotine take to activate the reward pathway?
Less than 10 seconds
What is nAChR?
Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors
Which receptors of the nucleus accumbens do neurotransmitters attach to?
D2
Which pathway is nucleus accumbens in?
Mesolimbic pathway
What does VTA stand for?
Ventral tegmental area
What does activation of the nucleus accumbens lead to?
Euphoria
Increased alertness
Decreased anxiety
Activation of the nucleus accumbens reduces which emotion?
Anxiety
What three things are increased by activating the nucleus accumbens?
Euphoria
Alertness
Motivation
The nucleus accumbens is the …. Pathway the pre-frontal cortex is in the …. Pathway
Mesolimbic
Mesocortical
Which brain area is linked to decision making?
Pre-frontal cortex
Which brain area is linked to motivation?
Nucleus accumbens
Which brain area has a large concentration of dopamine neurons?
Ventral tegmental area
The ventral tegmental area and the nucleus accumbens are in which system in the brain?
Limbic system
What is the addictive component in cigarettes?
Nicotine
What if the missing word?
Nicotine addiction is due to …. Activation of the brains reward pathway.
Repeated
Why is motivation an important aspect of the nucleus accumbens?
It makes the person want to perform the smoking addiction again.
What is the pre-frontal cortex responsible for?
Attention so we know how to repeat the behaviour
How is the prefrontal cortex linked to addiction?
It results in the person making the decision to smoke again
Research to support brain neurochemistry was by McEvoy, studying people with which disorder
Schizophrenia
In McEvoy’s study, what drug were patients given?
Haloperidol
In McEvoy’s study how does the drug haloperidol work?
Dopamine antagonist
Blocks dopamine receptors
Lowering dopamine activity
What does an antagonist drug do?
Lower neurotransmitter levels
McEvoy found those patients given haloperidol smoked more, why is this?
They used nicotine to raise their dopamine levels after haloperidol had reduced these levels
Why can we criticise McEvoy’s research
Participants had schizophrenia which already affects dopamine functioning. May be hard to generalise findings to non schizophrenic population
State which AO3 points you could use for brain neurochemical explanation
Research to support - McEvoy
Sample bias of McEvoy
Reductionism
Practical applications
What does the neurochemical explanation reduce nicotine addiction down to?
Dopamine levels in the brain
What is the opposite side of reductionism?
Holism
What does holism consider?
Cultural and social context
What could be holistic explanation for smoking addiction
Peers pressure in adolescence
Parental upbringing
Cultures having more positive views of smoking
What could be a practical application of the neurochemical explanation of smoking addiction?
Development of nicotine replacement therapy
How does nicotine replacement therapy work?
Gives individuals nicotine in a less harmful way and over time thus dose gets reduced
Nicotine replacement therapy gives people a safe way to have nicotine. What happens to this overtime?
Slowly reduce dosage, reducing tolerance
By reducing the dosage of Nicotine replacement therapy over time. What does it reduce?
Tolerance
One practical application of the neurochemical explanation of smoking is NRT. What does NRT stand for?
Nicotine replacement therapy
How does NRT work?
Gives nicotine in a less harmful way
Overtime this dose gets reduced
Reducing tolerance
What are two ways Nicotine replacement therapy can be given?
Gum
Patches
State two ways nicotine replacement therapy could be good for the economy.
1) treating people reduced chance of smoking related illness do people can work longer
2) By treating people the NHS won’t have to spend as much on treatment for smoking related illnesses
What is meant by upregulation?
Smoking causes an increase in the number of nicotine receptors in the brain
Name the two cellular changes that smoking causes
Upregulation and downregulation
As the person smokes more what happens to the nicotine receptors?
They increase in numbers
Why does the increase in nicotine receptors lead to tolerance?
More nicotine receptors = more nicotine is needed to activate them so the person smokes more
What happen to nicotine receptors when the person hasn’t smoked for a few hours and what does this lead to?
They become available
Withdrawal/cravings
Explain down regulation
D2 receptors in the nucleus accumbens become less sensitive and reduce in numbers
What is the consequence of down regulation?
The person will now need to smoke more to increase dopamine to stimulate the receptors to feel a “buzz”
What is the key term for the increase in the number of nicotine receptors as a result of smoking overtime?
Upregulation
What is the key term for the decrease in the number of D2 receptors as a result of smoking overtime?
Down regulation
