Neurotransmitters Flashcards
What’s a neurotransmitter?
Small chemical molecules which are synthesized in neuron and used to send signal to other neurons (a way of communication)
What are the common Neurotransmitters that we need to remember?
Adrenaline (epinephrine)
Noradrenaline (norepinephrine)
Dopamine
Serotonin
GABA
Acetylcholine
Glutamate
Endorphins
What are epinephrine and norepinephrine responsible for?
Both are similar as they deal with stressful situations i.e. fight or flight response and act upon sympathetic nervous system
What does epinephrine do?
Alerts the body of something stressful and increases the heart rate, directs the blood flow to muscles, and dilate the pupils
What does norepinephrine do?
They alert the body of something stressful and keep the body temp. up, increase blood pressure, and stimulate the energy production to fight off
What’s GABA (Gamma Aminobutyric Acid) responsible for?
It’s a major inhibitory neurotransmitter responsible for regulating our behavior
eg) stoping at red signal
What’s acetylcholine
It’s responsible for cholinergic signaling that allows us to focus to learn and form memories
What’s neurotransmitter serotonin responsible for?
It’s responsible for sleep wake cycles i.e. more serotonin more sleepy you are
Also, involved in emotional processing, mood, appetite and more
What’re endorphins responsible for?
For inhibiting pain and act as natural painkillers
What’s neurotransmitter dopamine responsible for?
It’s responsible for providing pleasure and a reward pathway
eg) it’s released when someone takes drugs or alcohol
What’s temperament?
Basic foundation of personality including demeanor, mood, energy level, and emotional responsiveness
What is candidate gene approach?
It focus on specific genes of interest to study genetic variation
Genome wide association studies (gwas)
Focuses on entire human genome to study genetic variance
