Recreational Drugs

• what do recreational drugs alter?

  An individual's mood, cognition, perception and behaviour
• what do many recreational drugs affect?

  Neurotransmission in the reward pathway of the brain
• what do antagonists do?

  block specific receptors causing the nervous system to increase them in number and sensitivity. this leads to sensitisation
• what does sensitisation lead to?

  addiction where the individual craves more of the drug
• what do agonists do?

  stimulate specific receptors causing the nervous system to decrease them in number and sensitivity. This leads to desensitisation
• what does desensitisation lead to?

  drug tolerance where more of the drug must be taken for an effect
• What is a reuptake inhibitor in the context of recreational drugs?

  Blocks reuptake of NTs
• Reuptake inhibitors increase action potential by leaving more neurotransmitters in the synapse
• An agonist reduces the effects of neurotransmitters.

  False
• How does cocaine act as a reuptake inhibitor on dopamine?

  Blocks dopamine transporter
• Long-term cocaine use can lead to a less sensitive reward pathway
• What are some short-term effects of amphetamine use?

  Nausea and psychosis
• Long-term amphetamine use can cause hallucinations.
• What neurotransmitter is released when mu-opioid receptors are activated by heroin?

  Dopamine
• Activating mu-opioid receptors reinforces drug-taking behaviour
• What did Valkrow's research using PET scans demonstrate about drugs and dopamine?

  Increased dopamine release
• Alexander's Rat Park study showed that social isolation contributes to drug addiction.
• How could psychological knowledge be applied in society to address drug addiction?

  Develop medical treatments
• The pain-reducing effects of cannabis are used for medical conditions
• What type of reinforcement occurs when drug use leads to pleasurable effects?

  Positive reinforcement
• Positive reinforcement in drug use is linked to dopamine release in the reward pathway.
• How does negative reinforcement contribute to drug use behavior?

  Reduces anxiety and stress
• Reductionist research on drugs explains their initial effects on the brain
• What factors does reductionist research on drugs fail to consider?

  Social and emotional
• What are recreational drugs also termed because of their long-term dangers?

  Drugs of abuse
• Alcohol and tobacco are legal recreational drugs with restrictions in the UK.
• Recreational drugs affect the central nervous system, which is also known as the CNS
• Which neurotransmitter is associated with reward and pleasure in the brain?

  Dopamine
• Steps in the neurotransmission process

  1️⃣ Release of neurotransmitters

  2️⃣ Binding to receptors

  3️⃣ Signal transmission
• Dopamine is generated naturally in the brain during activities like eating.
• Match the neurotransmitter with its effect:

  Dopamine ↔️ Reward and pleasure

  Serotonin ↔️ Mood regulation

  Acetylcholine ↔️ Muscle contraction
• What is a pathway of dopaminergic neurons called?

  Pleasure centre
• The mesolimbic pathway is a dopaminergic pathway located in the brain's limbic
• What is the intense sensation of pleasure triggered by a rush of dopamine called?

  Euphoria
• Recreational drugs can artificially trigger euphoria.
• Drugs like nicotine are considered dopamine agonists
• What natural neurotransmitter does nicotine mimic in the brain?

  Acetylcholine
• Steps in nicotine's effect on the brain

  1️⃣ Nicotine enters the bloodstream

  2️⃣ Attaches to acetylcholine receptors

  3️⃣ Releases dopamine

  4️⃣ Excites reward pathway neurons
• Nicotine is an acetylcholine agonist because it excites receptors.
• The brain's plasticity allows it to respond to overuse of nicotine by reducing the number of dopamine receptors