Alejandro Rodriguez

Dopamine is a neurotransmission chemical released

by the central nervous system that motivates, pleases,

and satisfies the brain and body. Neurotransmission

is the passing of a signal from one neuron to another.

Dr. Bryan Bruno, M. D. (2020, February 4) 1 Nuerons Dopamine affects your sleep, attention, motivation,
Synapses and Dendrites connecting to exchange
messages.
and memory.

Chemical Structure

Dopamine is a type of aromatic amines called Catecholamine: consists of aromatic

amines like adrenaline and dopamine. The chemical structure consists of 8 carbon, 1 hydrogen, 1

nitrogen, and 2 oxygen atoms (C8H11NO2). It’s created by an amino acid called Tyrosine when

it is converted into L-dopa: an amino acid made and used as a basic building block some plants,

animals, and humans. The enzyme decarboxylase: A catalyzing enzyme of a particular organic

molecules, turns L-DOPA into dopamine anywhere in the body (Abbott, 2010). Once dopamine

released to the neurons, it goes through Reuptake: the retrieval of chemicals not received by the

next neuron, and becomes stored for future use.

Dopamine functions

Dopamine has many roles affecting many parts in the human body. Dopamine affects

movement, memory, attention, behavior, learning and more. It is released in the body as a

hormone, which is why it can affect the body in positive and negative ways. Low levels of

dopamine can cause fatigue, lack of motivation, depression and can include memory loss, mood

swings, and problems with concentration. Elevated levels can cause euphoria, energy, and
increased sex drive but can also cause restlessness, poor control of impulses and aggression.

Overproduction of dopamine stimulating the brain creating a rewarding feeling for certain habits

can lead to addiction. Examples of habits that can become addictive are food, drugs, alcohol, sex,

and nicotine. Lack of dopamine can cause Parkinson’s Disease and restless leg syndrome.

Dopamine on the Body

Dopamine is known primarily because it makes humans feel good when it's released. It

gives you motivation when you need it most for example when you’re under pressure. Dopamine

is important for survival because it rewards the body when its feed, hydrated, and reproducing.

These pleasurable actions release dopamine and cause humans to seek more of that rewarding

feeling (Cleveland Clinic, 2022). When the body has a healthy level of dopamine in it, the

feeling of alertness, happiness, motivation, and focus is present. Exercise, playing with friends,

walking, reading, and hiking are a few of many engaging activities that make you feel happy,

which are believed to increase dopamine levels.

Dopamine has several significant functions that are vital to the human body. It provides a

healthy lining to the gut (Cleveland Clinic, 2022). It acts like vasodilator: Promotion of dilation

in blood vessels, by relaxing or constricting blood vessels. Works to remove excessive urine and

sodium from the body. Reduces overproduction of insulin in the pancreas and reduces

lymphocyte: immune cell in bone marrow and found in blood in the lymph tissue, activities in the

immune system (Cleveland Clinic, 2022). Having proper levels of dopamine allows the bodies

organs to function properly as described above. Each organ requires a specific number of

hormones to function correctly, any deprivation leads to failure.

 The diseases associated with the over production and underproduction of dopamine has

been noted to have drastic effects on human bodies. Attention deficit Hyperactivity disorder is a

disorder of the nervous system which causes problems following directions, remembering

information, concentration, or organizational tasks. Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative brain

condition that causes parts of the brain to deteriorate as people age. Willis-Ekbom disease is a

disorder that causes strong urges to move. People can also develop obesity, mania, and addiction.

Schizophrenia is another disease believed to be caused by having too much dopamine in certain

areas of the brain which cause delusions and hallucinations while the lower levels of dopamine

cause a lack of motivation. Depression is one of the leading effects of low dopamine levels.

Dopamine provides people with satisfaction and willingness to complete daily activities but with

a lack of dopamine the human body begins to go into a depressive state.

Addiction

Dopamine addiction begins when the firing of predictive stimulants develops stimulant

reliability by unconditioned: Unlearned response to a stimulant reward. Addiction can be to sex,

drugs, sugar, and even shopping. Each addiction releases dopamine in its own way, from

blocking reuptake to unconditioned dopamine releases. When humans have sex, the amount of

dopamine released is like doing cocaine due to the burst released. When a person does cocaine,

the reuptake of dopamine is blocked by the drug

causing the dopamine to be stuck on the neuron

receptors causing the dopamine release to be

prolonged. Consuming sugar causes bursts of

dopamine which over

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T. (2012, cause a chemical
1 MRI change
scan of the brain to
show brain function between a person with addiction
in the bodyand
changing thebrain
a nonaddict amount of dopamine that
is released. This change causes the brain to ask for more sugar due to the chemical changes in

releases of dopamine.

Addiction identifies rewards and reward predictive cues that control behavior (Wise &

Robbel, 2020). Drugs are the most addictive of all of these because of how strong they affect the

reuptake. Cocaine is the most common drug to block reuptake. When cocaine enters the body, it

begins the cause bursts of dopamine leading to extreme energy, happiness, and pleasure. This

drastic release leaves the brain wanting more due to the immediate rewards. Alcohol when

consumed in small doses causes a release of dopamine and is habit building. Drinking larger

amounts of alcohol causes decline in dopamine and depression (Wise & Robbel, 2020).

Future Medicine

Depression is a result of a lack of dopamine and serotonin. Researchers are still studying

depression to find out exactly why depression is difficult to cure. Some medications can help but

require weeks to see results. The lowering levels of dopamine cause lack of eating, sleep, and

relaxing activities that would otherwise increase dopamine. The imbalance of dopamine is

dangerous because the side effects can be difficult to treat. Although not every imbalance results

in negative effects, it's important to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Dopamine has been produced in labs to help Combat Parkinson's disease, cocaine

addictions and depression. During a study researchers found that D2/3 was significant when

value-based decision-making concluded that it may be able to restore capacity disorders of

dopaminergic signaling, such as ADHD (Natsheh, 2021). The significance recorded during the

study is one of many promising research studies conducted. The studies allow for better a better

understanding of dopamine on the brain ad body. Currently dopamine agonist: drug or other

chemical agent that binds to a particular receptor and produces a physiological effect, typically

one similar to that of the body’s own  neurotransmitter  at that receptor. Drugs are used to treat

Parkinson’s Disease, ADHD, Restless Leg Syndrome and Depression.

Sources

Abbott, A. (2010, August 25). Levodopa: The story so far. Nature News. Retrieved September

26, 2022, from https://www.nature.com/articles/466S6a#citeas

Dopamine: What it is, Function & Symptoms. Cleveland Clinic. (2022, March 23). Retrieved

September 26, 2022, from https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/22581-dopamine

Dr. Bryan Bruno, M. D. (2020, February 4). Serotonin and dopamine: Know your

neurotransmitters. Mid City TMS. Retrieved September 23, 2022, from

https://www.midcitytms.com/serotonin-and-dopamine-getting-to-know-your-

neurotransmitters/

Natsheh, J. Y., Espinoza, D., Bhimani, S., & Shiflett, M. W. (2021). The effects of the dopamine

D2/3 agonist quinpirole on incentive value and palatability-based choice in a rodent

model of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Psychopharmacology, 238(11), 3143–

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Simpatico, T. (2012, April). (PDF) low level of brain dopamine D 2 receptors in ... -

researchgate. Research Gate. Retrieved September 27, 2022, from

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_2_Receptors_in_Methamphetamine_Abusers_Association_With_Metabolism_in_the_O

rbitofrontal_Cortex
Wise, R. A., & Robbel, M. A. (2020, January). Dopamine and addiction | annual review of

psychology. Retrieved September 27, 2022, from

https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/full/10.1146/annurev-psych-010418-103337