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B&B Week 7 Flashcards > Lecture 31: The Neurobiology of Addiction > Flashcards

Lecture 31: The Neurobiology of Addiction Flashcards

1
Q

What are the annual deaths from tobacco? Alcohol? Cocaine + heroine?

A

450,000
100,000
5000 + 2000

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2
Q

What is diaphoresis?

A

Excessive sweating commonly associated with shock and other medical emergency conditions

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3
Q

What do you do if your colleagues are abusing drugs or alcohol?

A

Get them into treatment because they do the best with treatment

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4
Q

Is environment important for addiction?

A

Not really
Example: babies in Scandinavia who had alcoholic parents who were adopted into a nonalcoholic family had the same prevalence of alcoholism as did babies who had alcoholic parents and were raised in an alcoholic household
Genes are most important…

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5
Q

What is the most important factor in determining your susceptibility to addiction?

A

Genetics, heritability

Certain people are more genetically predisposed to addiction than others

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6
Q

What is the definition of addiction?

A

When you do something that is harmful but you CANT CONTROL IT
Drug use that is “out of control”
Disorder of reward system
-compulsive use

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7
Q

What is the difference between dependence and addiction?

A 
Dependence = NORMAL response … such as dependence on caffeine to stay awake (withdrawal symptoms)…also pain medication and gaining tolerance
Addiction = you literally cannot stop
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8
Q

Is tolerance and withdrawal symptoms of addiction if the drug is prescribed?

A

No, if physicians prescribe shit to you, tolerance/withdrawal are normal

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9
Q

Which drug has the highest rate of addiction among those who try it?

A

Nicotine
31.9% of people who try cigs get addicted
vs.
16.7% of people who try cocaine get addicted

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10
Q

What are the key areas of reward system?

A

Dopaminergic release into the nucleus accumbens

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11
Q

What drugs increase dopamine in nucleus accumbens?

A
  1. Nicotine
  2. Cocaine
  3. Alcohol
  4. Opiates
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12
Q

What is compulsion?

A

An irresistible impulse to act regardless of the rationality of the motivation
-a strong irrational impulse to carry out a given act

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13
Q

What is the prime target of addictive drugs?

A

The mesolimbic dopamine system

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14
Q

What is the mesolimbic dopamine system?

A

Originates in the ventral tegmental area (the middle part of the midbrain…remember the cross sections and how tectum was the roof)
-projects to the nucleus accumbens, the amygdala and the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex

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15
Q

What neurotransmitter is released by neurons of VTA?

A

Dopamine

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16
Q

How does the mesolimibic dopamine (ML-DA) sytem work? Significance?

A

When VTA begins to fire, large quantities of dopamine are released into the nucleus accumbuns and the prefrontal cortex
-this leads to strong reinforcement
Drugs of abuse are dopaminergic in that it leads to this constant reinforcement of action…
-mesolimbic dopamine codes for the DIFFERENCE between expected and actual reward and leads to a strong learning signal

17
Q

What are the three classes of addictive drugs?

A 
1. drugs that bind to GPCR
	Can bind to Gi and leads to LESS inhibition from GABA so more dopamine signals
Examples:
	i. opioids
	ii. Cannabinoids
	iii. Gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB)
	iv. LSD, mescalin, psilocybin
2. drug that interacts with inotropic receptors (ion channels)
	Can allow for more dopamine to go through channels
Examples:
	i. nicotine
	ii. alcohol
	iii. benzodiazepines
	iv. phencyclidine, ketamine
  1. drug that targets the dopamine transporter
    Can inhibit dopamine reuptake channels and thus increases the duration of dopamine in the synapse
    Examples:
    i. Cocaine
    ii. Amphetamine
    iii. Ecstasy
18
Q

What are the only non-substance addictions?

A

Gambling

Computer games

19
Q

What are the three variables that interact to lead to addiction?

A
  1. Agent
  2. Host
  3. Environment
20
Q

What influences the agent variable for addiction?

A

Availability of drug

  • dose of drug
  • price of drug, leads to tendency to try drug
21
Q

What influences the host variable for addiction?

A

Heredity

  • inherit tolerance
  • metabolism of nicotine/alcohol
  • amount of reward
22
Q

What influences the environment variable for addiction?

A

Role models
Stress
Boredom
Peer pressure

23
Q

What is tolerance?

A

The phenomenon in which the dose of a drug needs to be increased in order to maintain the same effect
Patients can have addiction with NO tolerance
Innate vs. acquired

24
Q

Can someone be addicted and NOT have tolerance?

A

Yes, tolerance is neither necessary nor sufficient for addiction

25
Q

What is cross tolerance?

A

Treating withdrawal with a similar medication
Tapering off used for detox
Examples: methadone for heroine/opioids
-oxazepam for alcohol

26
Q

What is sensitization?

A

Reverse of tolerance

Stimulants can have an increased effect with REPEATED and spaced dosing

27
Q

What is the effect of cocaine, meth and alcohol on D2 receptors?

A

They SATURATE them because there is so much dopamine in the synapse, one way or another

28
Q

What happens to people with more D2 receptors who are given methylphenidate? Someone with less D2 receptors?

A

They hate it

Less D2 receptors respond better to methylphenidate

29
Q

What are the factors leading to relapse?

A
  1. Psychiatric problems like depression and anxiety
  2. Social problems
    • unemployment
    • family problems
    • peer influence
  3. Conditioned Responses
30
Q

Are “pure” addicts common or rare?

A

Rare

  • most addicts have additional problems
  • treatment depends on additional problems
  • high treatment success for “pure” addicts
31
Q

What areas of the brain are activated when someone is given a cue that induces CRAVING?

A
  1. Anterior cingulate
  2. Amygdala
    The reward system
32
Q

What is the takehome point for O’Brien’s Addiction lecture?

A

Addiction is a chronic brain disorder persisting long after every trace of the drug has left the body. An important component consists of reflex activation of reward circuits in response to drug cues

B&B Week 7 Flashcards (16 decks)

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