PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY DRUGS THE BRAIN
AND BEHAVIOR MEYER ESSENTIAL STUDY
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
◉ Psychopharmacology.
Answer: Area that specializes in drugs that alter mood, thinking, or
behavior
◉ What is a Drug.
Answer: Hart & Ksir - "any substance, natural or artificial, other than
food, that by its chemical nature alters structure or function in the
living organism."
◉ pharmacology.
Answer: The study of the composition, uses, and effects of drugs
(tries to understand underlying problems and trying to figure out
answers)
◉ Etiology of the word "pharmakos".
Answer: Originally meant "scapegoat"
A pharmakos was a person who was sacrificed as a remedy for
whatever maladies another person might have . . .
,◉ Why might it be important to understand how drugs work?.
Answer: -To know how it affects people
-To know whether it is harmful for a fetus even though it doesn't
affect the mother
-To know how to interact with people and what they are going
through (Ex: The police)
◉ Examples of unusual drug effects that seem bizarre and
unpredictable . . ..
Answer: 1. Poison arrow toxins (curare)
* dart with poison-> shoots animal -> animal dies->person eats
animal -> no effect to the human
2. Urine testing (THC in Marijuana)
3. Failed birth control pills
* 2 medications taken where 1 alters the others' effect
4. Ordinary foods become poisons
*Tyramine
*MAO inhibitors as an antidepressant
◉ Bringing a drug to market.
Answer: Most of the drugs we have today have come from plants
New drugs must be tested on animals first (at least 2 species)
, Drugs used for long-term use in humans must be tested on animals
for a minimum of 2 years (overall this phase takes 5-7 yrs)
◉ Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Answer: FDA regulates drug development
3 phases of clinical investigation
Phase I: 20-80 normal people given very small doses of drug to look
for side effects
Phase II: Few hundred people who have a condition are treated
Phase III: 1,000-5,000 tested
Average costs: 1 billion for a drug
◉ "Owning a drug".
Answer: A drug can be patented for 20 years
When the patent expires, other companies can make their own
version of it under a different brand name
◉ What is a psychoactive drug?.
Answer: Mind-altering drug that affects thinking, feeling, and
behavior
◉ How might we be able to classify psychoactive drugs?.
Answer: -How it interacts with your body or brain
AND BEHAVIOR MEYER ESSENTIAL STUDY
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
◉ Psychopharmacology.
Answer: Area that specializes in drugs that alter mood, thinking, or
behavior
◉ What is a Drug.
Answer: Hart & Ksir - "any substance, natural or artificial, other than
food, that by its chemical nature alters structure or function in the
living organism."
◉ pharmacology.
Answer: The study of the composition, uses, and effects of drugs
(tries to understand underlying problems and trying to figure out
answers)
◉ Etiology of the word "pharmakos".
Answer: Originally meant "scapegoat"
A pharmakos was a person who was sacrificed as a remedy for
whatever maladies another person might have . . .
,◉ Why might it be important to understand how drugs work?.
Answer: -To know how it affects people
-To know whether it is harmful for a fetus even though it doesn't
affect the mother
-To know how to interact with people and what they are going
through (Ex: The police)
◉ Examples of unusual drug effects that seem bizarre and
unpredictable . . ..
Answer: 1. Poison arrow toxins (curare)
* dart with poison-> shoots animal -> animal dies->person eats
animal -> no effect to the human
2. Urine testing (THC in Marijuana)
3. Failed birth control pills
* 2 medications taken where 1 alters the others' effect
4. Ordinary foods become poisons
*Tyramine
*MAO inhibitors as an antidepressant
◉ Bringing a drug to market.
Answer: Most of the drugs we have today have come from plants
New drugs must be tested on animals first (at least 2 species)
, Drugs used for long-term use in humans must be tested on animals
for a minimum of 2 years (overall this phase takes 5-7 yrs)
◉ Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Answer: FDA regulates drug development
3 phases of clinical investigation
Phase I: 20-80 normal people given very small doses of drug to look
for side effects
Phase II: Few hundred people who have a condition are treated
Phase III: 1,000-5,000 tested
Average costs: 1 billion for a drug
◉ "Owning a drug".
Answer: A drug can be patented for 20 years
When the patent expires, other companies can make their own
version of it under a different brand name
◉ What is a psychoactive drug?.
Answer: Mind-altering drug that affects thinking, feeling, and
behavior
◉ How might we be able to classify psychoactive drugs?.
Answer: -How it interacts with your body or brain
