DRUGS ACTING ON THE

NERVOUS SYSTEM
DRUGS ACTING ON NERVOUS SYSTEM
Why is it important to study the nervous
system when learning about the drug
effects on the body?

Every feeling or emotion you have – all

psychological experience – is based on
brain activity
The brain is the basis of conscious
experience and is the key organ of the
nervous system
DRUGS ACTING ON NERVOUS SYSTEM

All psychoactive drugs produce their

effects by acting in some way on
nervous system tissue

Most of these actions occur at the level

of the brain
DRUGS ACTING ON NERVOUS SYSTEM

THE NEURON
The individual nerve cell is the
basic building block of the nervous
system. Similar to other cells but
they have the unique feature of
being able to communicate with
each other.
DRUGS ACTING ON NERVOUS SYSTEM
STRUCTURAL PROPERTIES
NUCLEUS –contains genetic material
and other processes that control
metabolic activities of the cell

DENDRITE – spiny branchlike

structures extending from the cell body
of the neuron; contain numerous
receptor sites important in neural
transmission
DRUGS ACTING ON NERVOUS SYSTEM
AXON – conducts an electrical charge
from the cell body to the axon terminals.
MYELIN – fatty, white substance that
covers the axons of some neurons and
provides insulation similar to insulation
for a wire.
ACTION POTENTIAL – electrical
impulse or signal transmitted along the
axon that occurs when a neuron fires;
produced by the flow of ions in and out of
the axon.
 DRUGS ACTING ON NERVOUS SYSTEM
NEURAL TRANSMISSION
Occurs without direct contact between the
neurons.
It may be thought of as an electrochemical
event – electrical along the axon and
chemical at the synapse.

AXON TERMINAL – enlarged buttonlike

structures at the ends of axon branches
 DRUGS ACTING ON NERVOUS SYSTEM

SYNAPSE – the junction between

neurons

NEUROTRANSMITTERS –
chemical substances stored in the
axon terminals that are released
into the synapse when the neuron
fires. These influence activity in
postsynaptic neurons.
 DRUGS ACTING ON NERVOUS SYSTEM
THE NEURAL TRANSMISSION
PROCESS
RECEPTOR SITES – specialized
structures located on dendrites and cell
bodies for neurons activated by
neurotransmitters.
They can be viewed as locks that must
be opened or unlocked by the
neurotransmitter keys before the
FIRING NEURONS
neuron fires.
 DRUGS ACTING ON NERVOUS SYSTEM

The key must fit the lock in order to

trigger the firing.

When a neurotransmitter molecule

binds to a receptor, changes occur in
the neuron that it makes it more or less
likely to fire.
FIRING NEURONS
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MECHANISMS FOR CHANGES
 IONOTROPIC RECEPTORS –
coupled to the ion channels that
regulate the number of charged
molecules inside and outside the
neuron.
When a transmitter binds to this
receptor, the channel opens and allows
charged particles to enter or leave the
cell
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 EXCITATORY TRANSMISSION –
occurs when there are more
positively charged ions inside the cell
generating an action potential

 INHIBITORY TRANSMISSION –
when channels are opened that result
in fewer positively charged ions
inside the neuron making it less
likely to fire
DRUGS ACTING ON NERVOUS SYSTEM
Ionotropic receptors are termed FAST
receptors because the entire process is
completed in just a few milliseconds

METABOTROPIC RECEPTORS
Receptors that are said to be slow
because they produce changes that are
slightly delayed (by a few hundred
milliseconds) and can be long – lasting.
DRUGS ACTING ON NERVOUS SYSTEM

They are not directly coupled with ion

channels but cause the release of
specialized molecules called second
messengers

They can increase the likelihood of

firing (excitatory) or decrease it
(inhibitory)
THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
o CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM (CNS)
The brain and the spinal cord

o PERIPHERAL NERVOUS SYSTEM

(PNS)
All nervous tissues outside the CNS. Includes
the nerves that send input from the senses to
the brain, and nerves that send output from
the brain to muscles, and the autonomic
nervous system.
THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
o AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM
(ANS)
Part of the PNS that regulates various
nonconscious or automatic functions. It has
two branches: sympathetic and
parasympathetic.
SYMPATHETIC BRANCH
Branch of the ANS activated during
emotional arousal by a release of epinephrine
and norepinephrine from the adrenal glands
THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
The sympathetic branch is responsible for
such physiological changes as increased
heart and respiratory rate, increased BP,
increased sweating, and pupil dilation as
blood flow is directed away from internal
organs to the brain and large muscle groups

FIGHT or FLIGHT reaction

THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
SYMPATHOMIMETIC
Substances that mimic or modify the
actions of endogenous catecholamines of
the sympathetic nervous system.

Drugs such as amphetamines, cocaine, and

some hallucinogens such as LSD mimic
sympathetic arousal by producing the
physiological effects of sympathetic
activity.
 THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
BETA BLOCKERS

Drugs that block a type of norepinephrine

receptor in the sympathetic system called
“beta” receptors that regulate blood
pressure.

Drugs such as propranolol are widely used

in the treatment of hypertension
 THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
PARASYMPATHETIC BRANCH
Branch of the ANS that in general balances the actions of
the sympathetic branch by exerting opposite effects such
as lowering heart rate and blood pressure and so on.
Drugs like nerve gases that act directly on this system can
be highly toxic by causing excessive parasympathetic
activity such as respiratory or cardiovascular activity.
Atropine, an antagonist at acetylcholine receptors, is an
antidote to nerve gas
 THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
PARASYMPATHETIC BRANCH
Branch of the ANS that in general balances the actions of
the sympathetic branch by exerting opposite effects such
as lowering heart rate and blood pressure and so on.
Drugs like nerve gases that act directly on this system can
be highly toxic by causing excessive parasympathetic
activity such as respiratory or cardiovascular activity.
Atropine, an antagonist at acetylcholine receptors, is an
antidote to nerve gas