Neurotransmitters Flashcards
List the basic steps and sites of drug action
Synthesis of a transmitter
Storage of a transmitter
Release of a transmitter
Interaction of a transmitter with receptor on effector cells
Removal/Degradation/Recycling of transmitters
Define hormones in the NS
Specialized endocrine cells secrete hormones into the bloodstream, where they travel throughout the body, exerting effects on broadly
distributed target cells.
Define local mediators
Most cells in the body secrete chemicals that act locally on cells in the immediate environment. Because these chemical signals are rapidly destroyed or removed, they do not enter the blood and are not distributed throughout the body. Histamine and the prostaglandins are examples of local mediators
Name 3 most commonly involved groups of neurotransmitters
Acetylcholine
Noradrenalin/adrenaline
Non-Ach/Non-adrenergic
Acetylcholine and norepinephrine are the primary chemical signals in the ANS
, whereas a wide variety of neurotransmitters function in the CNS.
Acetylcholine sites of action/release
Preganglionic (sympathetic & para)
Postganglionic Parasympathetic
(Postganglionic Sympathetic in arterioles & sweat glands)
Noradrenaline/adrenaline sites of action/release
Postganglionic Sympathetic
Examples of Non-Ach/Non-adrenergic
Serotonin, dopamine, GABA, histamine, nitric oxide
If transmission is mediated by acetylcholine, the neuron is termed
Cholinergic
Name the neurotransmitter at the adrenal medulla
Acetylcholine
In the somatic nervous system, where is transmission cholinergic?
Neuromuscular junction
When norepinephrine and epinephrine are the neurotransmitters, the fiber is termed
Adrenergic
Drugs that mimic or potentiate NE,
produce sympathetic effects that resemble fight or flight responses such as increased heart rate.
Drugs that mimic or potentiate Ach
produce parasympathetic effects such as decreased heartrate.
