Psychopharmacological Approaches Treating Psychopathology

Psychopharmacological Approaches to Treat Psychopathology

The Neuron

The nerve cell body contains cellular organelles where action potential and neural impulses are generated. The process stems from the cellar organelles and connects with other neurons facilitating the flow of neural impulses. Electrical signals are sent from the neuron through the length of its axion that converts into a chemical signal at the axion end. The dendrites are responsible for moving messages from one neuron to another (US Department of Health and Human Services, 2018). Dendrites are short and act in receiving impulses from other neurons and conduct electrical signals towards the nerve cell nucleus. Every neuron has a single axon and has several dendrites that differentiate different structural types of neurons, such as multipolar, pseudo-unipolar, unipolar, or bipolar.

What are the major components that make up the subcortical structures?

The main components include the diencephalon, basal ganglia, pituitary gland, and limbic structures. These structures are associated with complex activities such as emotion, memory, hormone production, and pleasure (Sonne et al., 2021). They act as the information hubs of the nervous systems since they relay and modulate information passing in different areas of the brain.

Which component plays a role in learning, memory, and addiction?

The fundamental mechanisms involving glutamate, dopamine, and the genomic and intracellular targets responsible for neuroplasticity are associated with the natural reward memory and learning (Kelley, 2004). These neurotransmitter systems are distributed extensively in the many regions of the limbic system, basal ganglia, and cortex are involved in the integrative role of learning, memory, and motivation that modulate adaptive behavior. Drugs primarily impact these pathways and induce a long-term cellular alteration in motivation networks that result in maladaptive behaviors.

What are the two key neurotransmitters located in the nigra striatal region of the brain that play a major role in motor control?

The substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNpr) and nigra pars compacta (SNpc). SNpr contains inhibitor gamma-aminobutyric neurons (GABAergic), while the SNpc contains dopaminergic neurons. The SNpc dopaminergic projections to the putamen, striatum, and caudate nuclei. The projections in the striatum are separated into the D1-family and D2-family receptor neurons. D1-family of neurons form inhibitor projections to the direct pathways (globus pallidus internus GPi). The D2-family of neurons inhibits the stimulatory subthalamic nucleus (STN) that synapses on the GPi (Allen & Lyons, 2018). The second pathway, the indirect pathway, stimulates the GPi while the direct pathway inhibits the GPi. The balance of these functions of these pathways regulates the initiation of motor output. GPi sends its inhibitory projections to the Ventral Anterior (VA) and the Ventral Lateral (VL) nuclei of the thalamus. Depending on the balance of the direct and inhibitory direct pathways, they either inhibit unwanted motor output or disinhibit motor output.

How glia cells function in the central nervous system

After birth, neurons in the central nervous system, either radially or through the neuroepithelium, are established tangentially and specific cortical layers. The function of glia in the regulation of tangential migration of neurons. Radial glia also displays polarized mRNA transport and the localization of protein translation simultaneously to their processes. Glia’s role in the development and specification of the direction of axon development. Glia regulates the formation and pruning of synapses (Allen & Lyons, 2018). Synaptogenesis involves a series of strengthening, formation, and remodeling steps in which glia plays a role at different stages. Glia is also responsible for regulating the concentration of transmitters available at synapses.

Explain the Concept of “Neuroplasticity”

Neuroplasticity refers to the brain’s ability to modify, change, and adapt to structure and function throughout life and in response to experiences. Individual differences are associated with variability observed in brain function and structure mechanisms of neuroplasticity (Voss et al., 2017). Some of the determinants of neuroplasticity are age, sex, and sensory experience to produce a brad variability of plasticity.