Give an account of how the monoamines act as transmitters and their roles in function in the brain

Give an account of how the monoamines act as transmitters and their roles in function in the brain The monoamines are a group of neurotransmitters which contain only one amino acid. Examples of monoamines include the catecholamines dopamine and noradrenaline, and serotonin. They allow signals in the brain to be transmitted across the synapse from one neuron to the next; from signals of wanting and reward, to the motor control of muscles. One neurotransmitter has different functions in different parts of the brain through the action of different receptors for the same neurotransmitter. Whilst there may be several receptor proteins responsible for different functions, each monoamine has specific receptor proteins which it binds to and is thus able to affect the behaviour of the target cell. The signal sent is attenuated by reuptake of the monoamines by the transporters of the cell from which the signal was released, as well as break down by enzymes (Torres, Gainetdinov & Caron, 2003). Monoamines are mostly found in the limbic system; the primal brain areas which are responsible for basic needs, such as hunger and sex, as well as mood and emotion. In different areas of the brain monoamines have different functions, for example in the cortex dopamine plays a role in cognition; and in the hypothalamus it influences hormonal regulation. Noradrenaline and serotonin are very

  • Word count: 1991
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Subjects allied to Medicine
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Struggle with Cocaine Addiction in Bright Lights, Big City.

Struggle with Cocaine Addiction in Bright Lights, Big City In the novel, Bright Lights, Big City, by Jay McInerney, You is the main character who battles drug addiction from cocaine. Cocaine alters many addicts' lives and You's life in the novel. You goes about his personal life and work life unaware that the vast problems that occur all stem from his addiction to cocaine. Cocaine addicts often confide in cocaine usage to motivate themselves in overwhelming and difficult issues in life. The difficult issues often deal with family, friends, and an individual's personal life or their work atmosphere. For You, cocaine offers the sense of acceptance that he is unable to find anywhere else. Also, among most cocaine addicts, they are able to confide in the drug to get them through hard times and help themselves escape into a fantasy world. From the extensive use of cocaine, You is able to escape the reality world into his fantasy world. However, the acceptance and confidence drug addicts, including You, find in cocaine is followed by ongoing psychological and physical effects. The countless days without sleep, gradual forgetfulness, the importance of cocaine over daily and work obligations, paranoia and anxiety, and masking the truth with lies are just a few effects that cocaine addicts and especially You endure. Cocaine is a dangerous and powerful drug that has been

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Subjects allied to Medicine
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Pathophysiology of health and disease

Pathophysiology Practical Name: Jamie Williams Student Number: ST07001388 Course: Sport Biomedicine and Nutrition Module: Pathophysiology Pathophysiology of Disease In this practical write up I will establish the haematological indices of a patient's blood, in order to determine how healthy the individual is. We can establish what diseases the patient is suffering from or what diseases they may suffer from due to the symptoms they are showing. 'Pathophysiology is the study of the disturbance of normal mechanical, physical, and biochemical functions, either caused by a disease, or resulting from a disease or abnormal syndrome, or condition that may not qualify to be called a disease'. (Kumar, V et al). More formally, it is the branch of medicine which deals with any disturbances of body functions, caused by disease or prodromal symptoms. Hematology is the branch of biology (physiology), pathology, clinical laboratory, internal medicine, and pediatrics that is concerned with the study of blood, the blood-forming organs, and blood diseases. Hermatology includes the study of etiology, diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, and prevention of blood diseases. The lab work that goes into the study of blood is performed by a Medical Technologist. Blood diseases affect the production of blood and its components, such as blood cells, hemoglobin, blood proteins, the mechanism of

  • Word count: 1628
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Subjects allied to Medicine
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In light of reduced uptake of the triple MMR vaccination, how do we increase protection levels to WHO recommended levels (95%) and protect the revenues of XYZ Pharmaceuticals

Masters of Business Administration (MBA) Full-time Techniques In strategic Consultancy 2001-2002 session Professor: Dr Geoff Coyle In light of reduced uptake of the triple MMR vaccination, how do we increase protection levels to WHO recommended levels (95%) and protect the revenues of XYZ Pharmaceuticals Submitted by: Julie O'Brien Reviewed problem with: Andrew Garnett Lawrence Rosedale Contents Part A 3 Viable Firm Matrices 3 Purpose 3 Nature 3 Potential Uses 3 Part B 4 Introduction 4 Influence Diagram 4 TOWS Analysis 5 TOWS Potential Action Plan 6 Viable Strategy Matrix 7 Congruence Analysis 8 Resource Analysis 8 Force Field Analysis 10 Recomendations 11 Part C 12 Limitations and Benefits of the technique 12 Figures Figure 1 Viable Firm Matrix 3 Figure 2 Influence Diagram 5 Figure 3 TOWS analysis 6 Figure 4 Action Set from TOWS analysis 6 Figure 5 Assumptions Made To Create Action Plan 7 Figure 6 Action Plan Groups 7 Figure 7 Viable Strategy Matrix 8 Figure 8 Congruence Analysis 9 Figure 9 Resource Analysis 9 Figure 10 Force Field Analysis - Protection Levels 10 Figure 11 Force Field Analysis - Market Share 11 Part A Viable Firm Matrices Purpose The Viable Firm Matrix aids the identification of realistic ways forward for a complex problem. It does this by asking for the key factors involved in the problem to be

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Subjects allied to Medicine
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Pharmacy practice research assignment

Pharmacy Practice Research Assignment The authors sought to establish whether the incorporation of a medicine review and education programme would result in improved patient medicine compliance and knowledge in the general practice setting for patients aged 65 years or older. The authors set out to achieve this by selectively acquiring patients from one general practice who were 65 years or older and taking three or more medicines. Patients were unable to participate if they lived in nursing or residential care homes, were unable to self-administer their medication or suffered from a terminal illness with a life expectancy less than one year. Patients were randomly allocated to a control or intervention group following sequential recruitment from a patient list. A clinical pharmacist was appointed as the investigator who visited both groups on three occasions. Successive reviews conducted have estimated that as much as 50% of older patients may not be taking their medicines as prescribed. This may be done intentionally due to concerns and beliefs patients have over their medication, unintentionally, or a combination of both. Numerous approaches were proposed from a previous study with the aim of improving patient medicine compliance. Such propositions have proved successful when adopted under a hospital-based self-medication scheme for hospital patients upon

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Subjects allied to Medicine
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With reference to recent research, discuss the ways in which drugs affect human behaviour.

With reference to recent research, discuss the ways in which drugs affect human behaviour. Behaviour is a hard word to define as it has no clear beginning or end. The analysis of behaviour is specifically to describe the interaction of the organism's brain with the environment. This environment consists of the outside world and the organism's internal environment. The brain plays a major part of that internal environment and the behaviour produced becomes a part of the external environment. Behaviourism was first introduced in the early twentieth century by an American Psychologist, John Watson. He claimed that behaviour was the real subject matter for psychology as it was public, measurable, reproducible and open to scientific method. Psychologists and pharmacologists who study particular effects of drugs on behaviour often refer to their field as psychopharmacology. There have been several principles put forward to explain behavioural pharmacology, the main principle states that 'changes in our brain chemistry produce changes in our behaviour'. Virtually all our behaviour is under the control of the nervous system, and the effect of most behaviourally active drugs can ultimately be traced to a direct or an indirect action on some aspect of the functioning of the nervous system. The source of power for the electrical activity of the nervous system comes from an

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Subjects allied to Medicine
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Discuss the evidence for a dopaminergic system that is involved in reward and drug addiction.

Hemis no: 127844 Word Count: 1,962 PS2060B Biological Psychology Discuss the evidence for a dopaminergic system that is involved in reward and drug addiction Most drugs affect the brain and behaviour by changing synaptic transmissions (Rosenzweig 1999). In order to discuss the evidence for a dopaminergic system that is involved in reward and drug addiction, we need to establish the relationship that a dopaminergic system has with drug reward and drug addiction. In essence when we are discussing a dopaminergic system we are making reference to neurotransmitter systems. The intricacies involving the brain, neurochemically have become more prevalent through processes such as immunocytochemistry. Through such processes we are able to locate substances within the nervous system as well as identifying neurotransmitters. Dopamine and seratonin are neurotransmitters, which are integral in relation to drugs whether it is used for drug reward or drug addiction. This essay will focus on such neurotransmitters in order to discuss evidence for a dopaminergic system that is involved in reward and drug addiction. Neurotransmitters such as dopamine and seratonin originate from the family of monoamines. Monoamines are classified into to groups, catecholamine and indolemine. Dopamine is within the catecholamine class and seratonin along with another prominent neurotransmitter

  • Word count: 1970
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Subjects allied to Medicine
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Letter to an M.P. Concerning Cannabis

Letter to an M.P. Concerning Cannabis 0 Wall Drive, Four Oaks, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands B74 4DF 8 March 2001 Sir Norman Fowler c/o House of Commons, Westminster, London, W12 3HC Dear Sir Norman, Cannabis is a naturally occurring substance that can act as a relaxant and mild hallucinogenic. Cannabis can be smoked with or without tobacco, filtered through water, cooled or inhaled using all manner of drug paraphernalia, or eaten. The Labour Government at present opposes the legalisation of cannabis not only for recreational use but also for those using it as a pain reliever, some of whom are sent to jail for doing so. If cannabis was legalised it could help a lot of people. The medical benefits of cannabis have been proven by extensive medical research. This research has led to disproving many myths about the drug, e.g. it does not cause cancer, damage the lungs, impair short-term memory, nor causes brain damage. It is tobacco that cannabis is usually smoked with which causes these illnesses. Cannabis helps to ease pain, nausea and vomiting caused by serious illnesses such as cancer, AIDS, Multiple Sclerosis. It can improve the quality of life of many sufferers. It is less harmful than tobacco or alcohol. It should be a matter of choice whether or not people smoke cannabis because it is a fundamental human right that they can decide for themselves and this

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Subjects allied to Medicine
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Legalization Of Marijuana

Marijuana for Medicinal Purpose 1 Legalization Of Marijuana Karen Meikle English 105 Farida Jararah October 14, 2003 Marijuana for Medicinal Purpose 2 I. Legalizing Marijuana A. Legalized for Medicinal Purposes B. Less expensive to produce II. Marijuana Therapy A. Suppresses Nausea B. Relieves Pain C. Stimulates Appetite III. Medical Benefits of Marijuana A. Relieves pain of Multiple Sclerosis B. Ease pain in Limbs of AIDS sufferers C. Stimulates appetite of AIDS sufferers D. Controls glaucoma Marijuana for Medicinal Purpose 3 Although legalizing marijuana is a controversial topic, its legalization for medicinal purposes should not be an issue because it helps in reducing pain, and is also a treatment for some terminal illnesses. A few states, (eight to be exact) the most notable California, says marijuana use ought to be legal if prescribed by a doctor for critically ill patients, and they have sanctioned growing the plant for medicinal purposes. However in the other forty two states it is known to be illegal. Marijuana should be legalized for medicinal purposes. Any health effects it may cause pales in comparison to the pain and suffering

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Subjects allied to Medicine
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'Should the widespread use of antibiotics continue?'

'Should the widespread use of antibiotics continue?' The first antibiotic, penicillin, went into mass production in 1945 (5) and before this time, antibiotics were not used in medical practice and the majority of bacteria were characteristically sensitive to antibiotics. As these drugs became widely used and they still are, the bacterial resistance to one or more antibiotics has increased so much that antibiotics which were previously widely effective are no longer useful against certain bacterial types. In most cases, antibiotic resistance in pathogenic bacteria is not due to mutation where the protein that the antibiotic attacks is altered. Instead, antiobiotic resistance in nature normally involves the bacteria producing enzymes which target the antibiotic making it inactive. An important reason why the widespread use of antibiotics should not continue is that if a bacterium becomes resistant to all antibiotics availible and passes on these characteristics, then there could be a worldwide epidemic of disease. On April 28 1994, it was reported that some bacteria in patient samples could resist all currently availible antibiotics (2). In order to prevent this from happening on a massive scale, the use of antibiotics should be kept to a minimum and there should be larger investments into alternative treatments. During 1979-1987, 0.02% of pneumococcus strains were penicillin

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Subjects allied to Medicine
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