test 3 Flashcards
psychostimulants, nicotine, and alcohol
what is a psychostimulant?
sympathomimetic drug that increases psychomotor and sympathetic nervous system activity, improve alertness and positive mood, increase breathing, heart rate, blood pressure, and thoughts
what is the prevalence of cocaine hydrochloride?
0.5%
what is cocaine hydrochloride? how is it commonly administered?
-powder form of cocaine, most common, stable and water-soluble
-insufflation
what is the prevalence of crack cocaine?
0.1%
what is crack? how is it administered?
- a freebase form of cocaine
-lumps of cocaine base prepared by mixing cocaine with water and baking soda; can be heated and the vapors inhaled
what are the medical uses for pseudoephedrine and ephedrine?
-used to treat asthma because it opens nasal and bronchial passageways for breathing
-OTC cold medications
what are the medical uses for amphetamines? what is an example?
-treatment for ADHD and narcolepsy
-Adderall
what are the medical uses for methamphetamine? what is an example?
-treatment for ADHD
-desoxyn
what are the medical uses for methylphenidate? what is an example?
- ADHD treatment
-Ritalin, concerta
what routes of administration are used for psychostimulants?
-therapeutic use- oral administration
-recreational use- intravenous, injection, insufflation, inhalation
what was Freud’s relationship with cocaine?
-studied it for the use in treating depression and morphine dependence
-he used it regularly and encouraged friends and family to use it until a friend of his suffered from cocaine psychosis
what are the reinforcing effects of different routes of administration? which routes are the most reinforcing?
-the routes with the quickest onset effects are the most reinforcing
-intravenous injection, insufflation, inhalation
what are the mechanisms of action for amphetamines?
-increases release of dopamine into synapse
-prevents dopamine storage at high doses
-to a lesser extent serotonin and norepinephrine
what are the mechanisms of action for methylphenidate?
-prevents reuptake of monoamines
-blocks dopamine storage
what are the mechanisms of action for cocaine?
-prevent reuptake of monoamines
-Na+ channel blocker at high doses (makes it so neuron cannot send action potential and pain is not felt)
what causes “meth mouth”?
-poor hygiene
-damaged gums from chemicals
-reduced saliva
what are the symptoms of stimulant psychosis?
-paranoia
-agitation
-hallucinations such as formication which is the feeling of bugs in or on the skin
describe psychostimulant tolerance related to chronic use
-tolerance to positive subjective effects
-cross-tolerance between psychostimulants
-pharmacological tolerance which includes decreased sensitivity to D2 receptors
what are the 3 main adverse effects of tobacco?
-lung cancer
-cardiovascular disease
-chronic obstructive lung diseases
what enzyme metabolizes nicotine? what is the active metabolite?
-CYP-2A6
-cotinine
how do polymorphisms affect nicotine metabolism?
-lead to reduced activity of the CYP-2A6 enzyme
-tend to be lighter smokers
-lower risk of negative health effects
how does pharmacodynamic tolerance occur with nicotine?
compensates by upregulating (creating more) cholinergic nicotinic receptors
what pharmacological effects of nicotine are shared by chronic and first-time smokers?
-decreased appetite
-increase in heart rate and blood pressure
-acute tolerance
what pharmacological effects of nicotine are different between chronic and first-time smokers?
-chronic smokers have an upregulation of nicotinic receptors and an increase in psychomotor activity
-first-time smokers experience reduced hand steadiness, increased hand tremor, and decreased psychomotor activity
what are chippers? what fraction of smokers are chippers?
-long-term smokers who fail to develop an addiction to tobacco
-1/3
how do chippers resist dependence?
- environmental variables such as greater coping skills, less stress, and better social support
-genetic differences in nicotinic receptor’s desensitization such as less time in desensitized state and reduced acute tolerance creating longer-lasting effects
what do agonist medications for nicotine dependence do? what percentage of smokers quit? give an example.
-partial agonist lessens activation of nicotinic receptors minimizing withdrawal symptoms and reducing the reinforcing effects of smoking
-<50%
-chantix
what is alcohol proof?
double the alcohol %
what is alcohol %?
grams of alcohol per 100 mL of solution
how is alcohol metabolized and eliminated?
-the liver metabolizes 1/4-1/2 oz of alcohol per hour
-about 95% of alcohol is metabolized in the liver
-5% of alcohol is excreted unchanged through the skin and breath
how does alcohol affect GABA? in what parts of the brain does alcohol increase GABA?
-positive modulator for the GABA(subA) receptor therefore making it easier for GABA to bind
-cerebral cortex, hippocampus (process memory), and thalamus (sensory switchboard)
what are the effects of alcohol on body temperature?
-alcohol causes the blood vesses to dilate which increases blood flow to extremities and decreases blood flow to core body organs
what is alcohol priming?
the urge to consume more alcohol after having one or two drinks
what is alcohol poisoning?
suppression of medulla function which controls the autonomic nervous system for things such as breathing, heart rate, and vomiting
what happens due to pharmacodynamic tolerance of alcohol?
NMDA receptors are upregulated
what happens due to pharmacokinetic tolerance of alcohol?
increase in alcohol dehydrogenase enzyme
what is cirrhosis? what does it cause? how common is death?
-metabolism of oxygen causes the oxidation of liver cells
-results in cellular damage
-increased probability of developing an infection or cancer
-7th leading cause of death
what causes seizures due to alcohol?
-withdrawal symptom
-increase in glutamate and increase in GABA(subA) receptors
describe the anti drug abuse act of 1986 and how it changed in 2010. Give the amounts and ratios.
-disparity in sentencing beterrn those found with powder cocaine vs crack cocaine
-1986- 500g cocaine: 5g crack = 5 years in prison (1:100)
-2010- 500g cocaine: 28g crack = 5 years (1:18)
what is drug discrimination?
tendency for behavior to occur in the presence of a certain drug, but not in its absence
what is the training for a drug discrimination task?
-drug A is administered, responding on lever 1 is reinforced on a fixed ratio and the rat learns to press lever 1 when feeling the subjective effects of the drug
-saline is administered, responding on lever 2 is reinforced on a fixed ratio and when they do not feel the subjective effects of the drug, they press lever 2 for food
what is the testing for drug discrimination tasks?
-give the rat different doses of a drug and if the test dose and training dose elicit similar responses, they share similar subjective effects
give different drug- introduce a new drug during testing to see if the subjective effects are similar
how do stimulants decrease the symptoms of ADHD?
-acts on the rate-dependent effects of goal-oriented behavior
-enhance alertness
-elevated dopamine in the limbic system and prefrontal cortex may aid in working memory
-neuroprotection- prevents damage to the dopamine neurons
what are the mechanisms of action of nicotine?
-it is an agonist of the cholinergic nicotinic receptors,
-cotinine is a partial agonist meaning it binds to the receptor sites and weakly activates them
-the receptors quickly desensitize and channels for positively charged ions close and the receptors cannot be activated
what are the possible causes for hangovers?
-acute alcohol withdrawal because alcohol consumption alleviates hangover
-buildup of acetaldehyde
-acetate accumulation which increases adenosine which is known to cause headaches and fatigue
-other chemicals in alcohol like methanol that produces adverse symptoms and congeners
what does it mean that nicotine is a functional agonist?
receptors stay in an inactivated state longer than an activated state
