2. Drugs are either….
• Agonists-drug that can
combine w/ receptor on a
cell to produce a
physiological response.
Antagonists-drug that
counteracts the effects of
another drug
• Reuptake inhibitors-blocks
release of serotonin
If a drug is used often,
tolerance is created for the
drug.
Thus you need more of the drug
to feel the same effect.
If you stop using a drug you can
develop withdrawal
symptoms.
3. Drugs: Depressants
• Alcohol effects
• motor skills
• judgment
• memory
• increases aggressiveness
• reduced self awareness
• Represses REM.
• Barbiturates Drugs that depress the activity of
the central nervous system, reducing anxiety but
impairing memory and judgment. Date Rape
Drugs
• Opiates (Narcotics) Opium and its derivatives
(morphine and heroin) depress neural activity,
temporarily lessening pain and anxiety. They
are highly addictive. Mimic Endorphins
3
4. Drugs: Stimulants
• Caffeine and nicotine increase heart and
breathing rates and other autonomic functions to
provide energy. Speeds up metabolism
• Amphetamines stimulate neural activity, causing
accelerated body functions and associated energy and
mood changes, with devastating effects.
• Ecstasy or Methylenedioxymethamphetamine
(MDMA) is a stimulant and mild hallucinogen.
– It produces a euphoric high and can damage serotonin-
producing neurons, which results in a permanent
deflation of mood and impairment of memory.
– Big Problem with dehydration
• Cocaine induces immediate euphoria followed by a
crash & depression. Crack, a form of cocaine, can be
smoked. Other forms of cocaine can be sniffed or
injected.
4
5. Case Study: Cocaine & Neurons
• By binding to the sites that
normally reabsorb
neurotransmitter molecules,
cocaine blocks reuptake of
dopamine, norepinephrine, and
serotonin.
• The extra neurotransmitter
molecules therefore remain in the
synapse, intensifying their normal
mood altering effects and
producing a euphoric rush.
5
6. LSD Experience
• 1943 Alan Hofmann found LSD by accident:
Last Friday, April 16, 1943, I was forced to stop my work in the laboratory in
the middle of the afternoon and to go home, as I was seized by a
particular restlessness associated with a sensation of mild dizziness. On
arriving home, I lay down and sank into a kind of drunkenness which was
not unpleasant and which was characterized by extreme activity of
imagination. As I lay in a dazed condition with my eyes closed there
surged upon me an uninterrupted stream of fantastic images of
extraordinary plasticity and vividness and accompanied by an intense
kaleidoscope-like play of colors. The condition graduate passed off after
two hours.
6
7. Drugs: Hallucinogens
• Hallucinations
– Sensory experiences without sensory
stimulus
• LSD
– (lysergic acid diethylamide) powerful
psychodelic drug (ergot fungus) that is also
known as acid.
– Likely to produce flashbacks
• MARIJUANA (Cannabis)
– THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol)is the
major active ingredient in marijuana (hemp
plant) that triggers a variety of effects,
including mild hallucinations
– Affects of marijuana are usually reversible after
one month
– "Chronic Use" does lead to memory loss &
cognitive impairment
– "Regular Users" can experience a high with
less of the product
7
8. Section 5: Which is True or False?
1. Alcohol is classified as a depressant, even in small amounts.
2. The discomfort when off of a drug is called tolerance.
3. LSD is considered a powerful hallucinogen.
4. Smoking marijuana can distort time, hence it is classified as a
stimulant
5. The main ingredient in ecstasy is THC
6. Heroin is classified as a depressant.
7. Cocaine has short-lasting effects because it prevents reuptake
of certain neurotransmitters.
8. Because nicotine produces a relaxing effect it is classified as a
depressant
8
Depressants such as alcohol, the barbiturates, and the opiates act by reducing neural activity and slowing body functions. Each offers its own pleasures, but at the cost of impaired memory and self-awareness or other physical consequences. Alcohol is a disinhibitor and thus increases the likelihood that we will act on both helpful and harmful impulses. It also impairs judgment, reduces self-awareness, and disrupts memory processes by suppressing REM sleep. Research indicates that when people believe that alcohol affects social behavior in specific ways, and believe that they have been drinking alcohol, they will behave accordingly. Studies find drinking and risky sex to be highly correlated. Barbiturates, or tranquilizers, mimic the effects of alcohol. In combination with alcohol, they can be lethal. The opiates also depress neural functioning and can cause the brain to stop producing its own opiates, the endorphins.
Stimulants, such as caffeine, nicotine, and the amphetamines and the even more powerful cocaine, Ecstasy, and methamphetamines, excite neural activity and arouse body functions. As with nearly all psychoactive drugs, they act at the synapses by influencing the brain’s neurotransmitters, and their effects depend on dosage and the user’s personality and expectations. Methamphetamine is highly addictive; over time, it appears to reduce baseline dopamine levels. Nicotine triggers the release of epinephrine and norepinephrine, which in turn diminish appetite and boost alertness and mental efficiency. Cocaine produces a euphoric rush that lasts 15 to 30 minutes and depletes the brain’s supply of the neurotransmitters dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine. A crash of agitat- ed depression follows as the drug’s effects wear off. Regular users become addicted and may expe- rience emotional disturbance, suspiciousness, convulsions, cardiac arrest, or respiratory failure. Ecstasy (MDMA) is both a stimulant and a mild hallucinogen. By releasing serotonin and block- ing its reuptake, it produces euphoria and feelings of intimacy. Its repeated use may suppress the immune system, destroy serotonin-producing neurons, and permanently damage mood.
Hallucinogens distort perceptions and evoke sensory images in the absence of sensory input. LSD and other powerful hallucinogens are chemically similar to (and therefore block the actions of) a subtype of the neurotransmitter serotonin. Common components of the LSD experience are hallucinations and emotions ranging from euphoria to panic. A person’s current mood and expectations affect the drug’s effects.
The sensations produced by LSD are strikingly similar to the near-death experience, an altered state of consciousness reported by about one-third of those who survive a brush with death. Near- death experiences are marked by out-of-body sensations, visions of tunnels and bright lights, and intense feelings of joy, love, and peace. The hallucinations of such experiences also closely parallel the hallucinations produced by loss of oxygen or extreme sensory deprivation.
Marijuana’s main active ingredient, THC, produces a variety of effects, including disinhibition, a euphoric high, feelings of relaxation, relief from pain, and intense sensitivity to colors, sounds, tastes, and smells. It may also increase anxiety or depression, impair motor coordination and reac- tion time, and disrupt memory formation. Because THC lingers in the body for a month or more, regular users may achieve a high with smaller amounts of the drug than do occasional users.
