How Do Drugs Influence Brain and Behavior?

Flashcards covering key concepts from the lecture on the influence of drugs on brain and behavior.

What is psychopharmacology?

The study of the ways drugs affect the nervous system and behavior.

What is a psychoactive drug?

A substance that acts to alter mood, thought, or behavior.

What are the routes of drug administration?

Injecting, oral intake, inhalation, and absorption through the skin.

What is the blood-brain barrier?

A barrier that prevents most substances, including drugs, from entering the brain via the bloodstream.

What is the Area postrema?

A barrier-free brain site that triggers a vomiting response.

How are drugs eliminated from the body?

Drugs are broken down in the kidneys, liver, and intestines, and are excreted in urine, feces, sweat, breast milk, and exhaled air.

What is an agonist?

A substance that enhances the function of a synapse.

What is tolerance in relation to drugs?

A learned behavior that results when a response to a stimulus weakens with repeated presentations.

What is sensitization in drug use?

An increased responsiveness to successive equal doses, more likely to develop with periodic drug use.

What are some recreationally used serotonergic drugs?

Mescaline, DMT, psilocybin, LSD, and MDMA.

What effect does nicotine have on acetylcholine?

Nicotine stimulates acetylcholine nicotinic receptors, indirectly causing the release of acetylcholine.

What is the role of dopamine in addiction?

Dopamine is involved in the pleasure response activated by drugs, influencing the craving and consumption behavior.

What are opioid receptors?

Receptors that bind to any endogenous or exogenous compound to produce morphine-like effects.

What is the difference between wanting and liking in drug use?

Wanting increases with repeated drug use while liking decreases due to tolerance.

What is disinhibition theory?

Theory that alcohol selectively depresses the cortex while sparing subcortical structures, leading to impaired impulse control.