Stimulants Emily, Ian, and Jenny

Stimulants  Drugs that affect the central nervous system  Increase brain activity and mental awareness  Relax airways and stimulate breathing  Reduce appetite  Cause heart tremors and palpitations  Cause restlessness and sleeplessness  Cause hallucinations

Caffeine  Found in coffee, tea, sodas  World’s most widely used stimulant  Has addictive properties

Caffeine How it works:  Adenosine is the substance which causes sleepiness as it attaches to adenosine receptors slowing neuron transmission.  Caffeine is similar in structure to adenosine so it attaches to the adenosine receptors.  This takes up the receptors from the regular adenosine not allowing the body to become tired.  This confuses the brain and causes adrenaline to flow often causing increased alertness.

Caffeine  Consumption in small amounts:  Enhancement of mental energy, alertness and ability to concentrate  Acts as diuretic, increases volume of urine, can cause dehydration  Consumption in large amounts:  Anxiety, irritability, insomnia  Can cause dependence; side effects on withdrawal include headaches and nausea

Caffeine: History  The coffee plant has been around for hundreds of years, originating in North Africa  An Ethiopian farmer noticed his goat behaving erratically after eating small berries that were soon dried and found to be coffee beans  Traders brought coffee to Europe where it grew steadily into the world wide industry it is now

Nicotine  Commonly found in cigarettes and other tobacco products (also found in tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant, and green peppers in small amounts)  Taken by inhalation of smoke or chewing tobacco  Extremely addictive

Nicotine How it works:  Nicotine imitates the neurotransmitter acetylcholine which releases cholinergic neurons throughout the brain at a different pace than normal.  Leads to increased activity and the production of dopamine which in turn causes the creation of a reward pathway.

Nicotine  Short-term effects:  Increases concentration  Relives tension  Counters fatigue  Increases heart rate and blood pressure  Decreases urine output  Long-term effect  High blood pressure  Increased risk of heart disease  Coronary thrombosis  Increased level of fatty acids in blood, leads to stroke  Overstimulation of stomach acids, leads to increased risk of peptic ulcers

Nicotine: History  Native to America  Records show it to be used at least as far back as Christopher Columbus’s landing  Trade with the Americas sped up and resulted in the spread of tobacco throughout Europe  Produced rapidly because it is a key industry for the United States

Nicotine vs. Caffeine Structure NicotineCaffeine

Amphetamines  Drugs that mimic and enhance effects of adrenaline and noradrenalin  Mimic the “fight or flight reflex”  Extremely addictive  Stimulate sympathetic nervous system, known as sympathomimetic drugs

Amphetamines  Stimulate pathways that:  Increase heart rate and blood pressure  Increase blood flow to brain and muscles  Increase air flow to lungs  Increase mental awareness  Amphetamine structure modified to create designer drugs  Methamphetamine: aka “speed” and “crystal meth”  Ecstasy

Amphetamines vs. Epinephrine  Both increase heart rate and blood pressure  Both increase blood flow to muscles and brain  Both increase airflow to the lungs  Both increase mental awareness

Amphetamines: History  Created artificially or synthesized in a lab, first in the late 1800s by a scientist working on a medicine for asthma.  Decades later it was revived as a cold medicine because it gave the user a “burst of energy”  It was used in tablet form during WWII to reduce soldiers fatigue  Scientist in Japan synthesized a more powerful form known as methamphetamine  In the 1960s physicians began to notice the addictive qualities and it was removed from the market

Cocaine  Powerfully addictive  Increases levels of dopamine in the brain  Increase of energy  Increase of talkativeness  Increase of heart rate  Increase of blood pressure

Cocaine: History  Used in South America by the ancient Incans through the naturally occurring plant Coca  Gained a reputation in the medical community when Sigmund Freud experimented with it  Widely used as a medicine in the 1800s until its extremely addictive symptoms were discovered

Jenny  Strengthening the accumbal indirect pathway promotes resilience to compulsive cocaine use  Genetic influence of dopamine receptor, dopamine transporter, and nicotine metabolism on smoking cessation and nicotine dependence in a Japanese population

Ian  Does a physiological concentration of taurine increase acute muscle power output, time to fatigue, and recovery ion isolated mouse soleus (slow) muscle with or without the presence of caffeine?  The effects of caffeine, nicotine, ethanol, and tetrahydrocannabinol on exercise performance

Emily  Psychostimulants and Cognition: A continuum of Behavioral and Cognitive Activation

Sources  “DrugFacts: Cocaine.” DrugFacts: Cocaine. N.p, n.d. Web, 11 Feb 2015  "The History of Cocaine - Where Does Cocaine Come From? - Drug-Free World." The History of Cocaine - Where Does Cocaine Come From? - Drug-Free World. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Feb  "The History of Crystal Methamphetamine - Drug-Free World." The History of Crystal Methamphetamine - Drug- Free World. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Feb  "History and Background." Caffeine. N.p., 12 Sept Web. 08 Feb  Lah, Katarina. "Nicotine - Introduction and History." - Toxipedia. Toxipedia, 8 May Web. 08 Feb