PSYC 273 - Chapter 12 Psychopathology: The Biology of Behavioral Disorders

paralytic dementia

physiologically caused by syphilis

delusions

false beliefs strongly held in spite of contrary evidence

schizophrenia

A severe mental illness characterized by negative symptoms such as emotional withdrawal and flat affect, by positive symptoms such as hallucinations and delusions, and by cognitive symptoms such as poor attention span.

positive symptoms

In psychiatry, an abnormal behavioral state. Examples include hallucinations, delusions, and excited motor behavior.

negative symptoms

In psychiatry, an abnormality that reflects insufficient functioning. Examples include emotional and social withdrawal, and blunted affect.

concordance

Sharing of a characteristic by both individuals of a pair of twins.

DISC1

a gene implicated in schizophrenia, short for disrupted in schizophrenia 1 linked to schizophrenia susceptibility

hypofrontality hypothesis

The idea that schizophrenia may reflect underactivation of the frontal lobes.

lobotomy

The surgical separation of a portion of the frontal lobes from the rest of the brain, once used as a treatment for schizophrenia and many other ailments.

chlorpromazine

An early antipsychotic drug that revolutionized the treatment of schizophrenia. Trade name - Thorazine

antipsychotic

Also called neuroleptic. Any of a class of drugs that alleviate symptoms of schizophrenia, typically by blocking dopamine receptors.

dopamine hypothesis

The idea that schizophrenia results from either excessive levels of synaptic dopamine or excessive postsynaptic sensitivity to dopamine.

dyskinesia

Difficulty or distortion in voluntary movement.

tardive dyskinesia

A disorder associated with first-generation antipsychotic use and characterized by involuntary movements, especially of the face and mouth.

first-generation antipsychotics

Also called typical antipsychotic or neuroleptic. Any of a class of antipsychotic drugs that alleviate symptoms of schizophrenia, typically by blocking dopamine receptors.

supersensitivity psychosis

An exaggerated “rebound” psychosis that may emerge when doses of antipsychotic medication are reduced.

second-generation antipsychotics

Also called atypical antipsychotic. An antipsychotic drug that has primary actions other than or in addition to the dopamine D2 receptor antagonism that characterizes the first-generation antipsychotics.

clozapine

A second-generation antipsychotic that blocks 5-HT2A (a type of serotonin) receptors.

Phencyclidine (PCP)

Also called angel dust. An anesthetic agent that is also a psychedelic drug. PCP makes many people feel dissociated from themselves and their environment. Acts as an NMDA receptor agonist.

psychotomimetic

A drug that induces a state resembling schizophrenia.

glutamate hypothesis

The idea that schizophrenia may be caused, in part, by understimulation of glutamate receptors.

depression

A psychiatric condition characterized by such symptoms as an unhappy mood; loss of interests, energy, and appetite; and difficulty concentrating.

habenulae

A paired structure near the posterior thalamus that is implicated in emotional cognition, reward, and mood.

electroconvulsive shock therapy (ECT)

A last-resort treatment for unmanageable depression, in which a strong electrical current is passed through the brain, causing a seizure.

repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)

A noninvasive treatment in which repeated pulses of focused magnetic energy are used to stimulate the cortex through the scalp.

deep brain stimulation

Mild electrical stimulation through an electrode that is surgically implanted deep in the brain.

monoamine oxidase (MAO)

An enzyme that breaks down monoamine neurotransmitters, thereby inactivating them. First modern antidepressants inhibit this oxidase.

monoamine hypothesis of depression

people with depression may not get enough stimulation at monoamine synapses

selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)

An antidepressant drug that blocks the reuptake of transmitter at serotonergic synapses.

ketamine

A dissociative anesthetic drug, similar to PCP, that acts as an NMDA receptor antagonist. Potential antidepressant.

cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)

Psychotherapy aimed at correcting negative thinking and consciously changing behaviors as a way of changing feelings.

meta-analyses

A type of quantitative review of a field of research, in which the results of multiple previous studies are combined in order to identify overall patterns that are consistent across studies.

postpartum depression

A bout of depression that afflicts a woman either immediately before or after giving birth.

anhedonia

a generalized reduction in experiencing pleasure or reward; thought to be a central feature of models of depression

learned helplessness

A learning paradigm in which individuals are subjected to inescapable, unpleasant conditions.

bipolar disorder

A psychiatric disorder characterized by periods of depression that alternate with excessive, expansive moods.

rapid-cycling biopolar disorder

consisting of four or more distinct cycles in one year (and some individuals have many more cycles than that; some may even show several cycles per day)

lithium

a chemical element that often relieves the symptoms of bipolar disorder

anxiety disorders

Any of a class of psychological disorders that includes recurrent panic states and generalized persistent anxiety disorder.

benzodiazepines

Any of a class of antianxiety drugs that are noncompetitive agonists of GABAA receptors in the central nervous system as noncompetitive agonists. One example is diazepam (Valium).The most common anxiolytic.

anxiolytics

“anxiety-dissolving” - a substance that is used to reduce anxiety, including alcohol, opiates, barbiturates, and benzodiazepines.

posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

A disorder in which memories of an unpleasant episode repeatedly plague the person.

fear conditioning

A form of classical conditioning in which a previously neutral stimulus is repeatedly paired with an unpleasant stimulus, like foot shock, until the previously neutral stimulus alone elicits the responses seen in fear.

obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)

An anxiety disorder in which the affected individual experiences recurrent unwanted thoughts and engages in repetitive behaviors without reason or the ability to stop.

Tourette’s syndrome

A disorder involving heightened sensitivity to sensory stimuli that may be accompanied by verbal or physical tics.

tics

A stereotyped involuntary movement or behavior, often occurring repeatedly

genome-wide association studies (GWAS)

A genetic research technique in which the genomes of many participants are screened to identify specific gene variants associated with a trait or disease of interest.