PRESCRIPTION DRUG USE,

ABUSE, AND OVERDOSE

2
Prescription Drug Use, Abuse,
and Overdose
Prescription opioid analgesics
abuse is a global problem that
affects the social, economic
and health spheres of all
societies. The CDC publication
entitled Opioid Painkiller
Prescribing
on the prescription drug
overdose on July 8, 2015
indicated that the opioid abuse
and dependence
has increased among the U.S
from 2003 to 2012 (Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention,
2015). The publication indicates
that the rise in the opioid use,
misuse and dependence has
occurred albeit the rise of
doctors and programs that offer
Medication-Assisted-Treatment.
In the
July publication, the CDC
reported that in the U.S Forty-
six people die from prescription
painkillers overdose daily.
Additionally, the July
publication reported that in the
year 2012, the
health care providers wrote two
hundred and fifty-nine million
prescriptions for pain relievers
(Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, 2015). The
publication further indicated
that Ten of
the highest prescribing states is
in the South especially West
Virginia, Alabama and
Tennessee.
The publication reported that
the geographical location of the
prescribers influenced how they
prescribed the opioid pain
relievers. The increased demand
for the prescription pain
relievers
emanated from people who use
them non-medically for the
euphoric rewards. Moreover,
most of
the states reported problems
with the high-volume pain
clinics that sell and prescribe
large
amounts of the painkillers to
persons who do not have
medical needs for profit
reasons. The
higher prescription of the pain
relievers associated with
additional overdose deaths
(Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention,
2015). More can be done to
curb the over-prescription of the
prescription drugs particularly
at the state level to ensure that
patients access safe and
effective
pain treatment.
Several factors may have led to
the menace of the prescription
drug abuse in the U.S. The
factors include an increase in
the number of written and
dispensed prescriptions, social
Neuroscience: Learning and Memory

PSYC 101: UNDERSTANDING PSYCHOLOGY

LECTURE 14: LEARNING AND MEMORY (2)

Learning Objectives

• Understand how learning takes place on a neural level

• Describe the mechanisms of synaptic plasticity and the role of the NMDA glutamate receptor

• Understand the importance of the hippocampus

• Understand the nature and neural basis of Alzheimer’s disease

Synaptic Plasticity – Neurobiology of Learning

• Learning is achieved in the brain by the modification of transmission across synapses

• The Hebb Rule (Hebb, 1949) states that if the post-synaptic membrane is active at the same time
as the pre-synaptic membrane then the synapse will be strengthened
o Neurons wire together if they fire together (Lowel and Singer, 1992)

• This process is called long-term potentiation and is the basic underlying mechanism of learning
and memory

• When the UCS and CS occur to initiate a response, the synapse is strengthened (classical
conditioning)

o When both inputs (CS and UCS) occur, the neuron is depolarised and the synapse of UCS is
strengthened, then the input from UCS alone can depolarise a neuron

• When the stimulus initiates a response which initiates a reward, the synapses are strengthened
(operant conditioning)

NMDA Glutamate Receptor

• The activation of the NMDAR, a major excitatory ligand-gated ion channel in the CNS depends
on a couple of coincidental events: the binding of its natural ligand (glutamate) and depolarisation,
which effects the removal of magnesium ions that otherwise block the ion-channel pore

• If a molecule of glutamate binds with the NMDA receptor, the calcium channel cannot open
because the magnesium ion blocks the channel

• The depolarisation of the membrane evicts the magnesium ion and unblocks the channel. Now
glutamate can open the ion channel and permit the entry of calcium ions

• Various experiments suggest that memory formation involves 2 types of glutamate receptors:
The N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) and the alpha-amino-3- hydroxyl-5-methyl-4-isoxazole
propionic acid receptor (AMPAR)

Stages of Memory