W7 Psychoactive drugs, GABA

requirement for drugs to have psychological effect?

act on existing endogenous process

two types of psychopharma research?

Probes: use drugs to study function of neurotransmitters.

Treatment: develop treatment from drug effects

What’s a confound?

a potential alternative to what seems like a druug effect

What are some confounds that can be controlled?

Expectation of drug’s effects, natural recovery

How can natural recovery be controlled for?

control group without treatment

How can expectation be controlled for?

placebo

How can expectation because of placebo be controlled for?

active placebo

Difference: within subjects and between subjects design?

Between - compare between participants.

Within - compare conditions within the same participants

Aim of neurocognitive models?

Explain link between cognition/behaviours, neurotransmitters, and disorders.

What disorder is noradrenaline linked to?

ADHD

What disorder is serotonin linked to?

mood disorders

What disorder is dopamine linked to?

schizophrenia

What function does dopamine affect?

stimulus salience

What function does serotonin affect?

emotional processing

What function does noradrenaline affect?

attention, focus, alertness

Which structure of the neuron receives signals?

dendrites

Which structure of the neuron release neurotransmitters?

Vesicles, axon terminals

Describe the ways that neurotransmitters are deactivated?

Reuptake - detach from receptor, transported back

Broken down by enzymes in synapse

Relationship between GABA and glutamate? How does GABA and glutamate work together?

Glutamate is the precursor. Work in opposition.

What’s the main excitatory neurotransmitter?

Glutamate

What’s the main inhibitory neurotransmitter?

GABA

What does excitotoxic mean? What can be excitotoxic

kill nerve cells in over-excitation, glutamate agonitsts.

What’s the receptor subtype of glutamate that ketamine acts on?

NMDA

Name some GABA agonists

Benzodiazepines, barbiturates, alcohol

Effects of GABA agonists?

Anxiolytic, sedative, hypnotic

Use of benzodiazepines.

pre-anaesthetic relaxants

Use of barbturates.

general anaesthetics

Name some GABA antagonists.

Flumazenil, picrotoxin

What substance reverse BZD sedation?

flumazenil

What is the antidote for barbiturates overdose?

picrotoxin