Leslie Iversen

A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions)

Drugs

The Science of Amphetamines

Speed, Ecstasy, Ritalin

It is difficult to imagine an era in which there were no selective drugs for treating anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, and other mental ailments. Yet in a remarkably short time these drugs have come to occupy a position of prominence in medical practice throughout the world, and they now account for a major portion of all prescriptions. Most psychotropic drugs were discovered with little premeditation on the part of the inves~ tigator. The drugs simply "worked," often with little rationale, and psychopharmacology has been for many years an empirical discipline in search of scientific underpinnings. In the past decade, a basic science of psychopharmacology has de veloped and grown rapidly. Though psychotropic drugs are exceedingly "young" as drugs in medical practice go, we probably know more about their various mechanisms of action than we know about most drugs in clinical use. Advances in understanding effects of psychopharmaceuticals on the brain have been so prodigious that a new research paradigm has evolved. Instead of being concerned solely with understanding how the drugs act, many researchers now employ psychotropic drugs as tools-often the most powerful ones-to elucidate brain function. Consequently, psychophar macology is central to neurobiology, which in turn has emerged as an important discipline, heir to the preeminent glamor of molecular biology.

Biochemical Principles and Techniques in Neuropharmacology

Solomon H. Snyder

Volumes 7 and 8 of the Handbook were published in 1977. In Volume 7 methods for studying unconditioned and conditioned behavior were reviewed. Attention was given to both ethological methods and operant conditioning techniques as applied to some selected aspects of behavior. Genetic, developmental, and environmental factors influencing behavior were also discussed. In Volume 8, neurotransmitter systems, and in par ticular brain circuits, were discussed in relation to behavior and to the effects of psychoactive drugs on behavior. The coverage was not exhaus tive because of space limitations. The topics selected for review were, at the time, the focus of considerable experimental effort; they included homeostasis-motivated behaviors: sleep, locomotion, feeding, drinking, and sexual behavior. Brain dopamine systems were therefore discussed in depth, since they were already known to be centrally involved in motivated behaviors. Learning mechanisms and emotion were reviewed in the remaining chapters. In 1984 we initiated an update of behavioral pharmacology to review areas of progress within the same scope as the earlier volumes. This update continues in Volume 19. Among the contributions are several that represent important advances in analyzing behavior and the use of more sophisticated methods to define the effect of drugs on particular aspects of behavior. The chapters by Blundell on feeding and Miczek on aggres sion illustrate the sophistication of modern ethopharmacology.

Volume 19 New Directions in Behavioral Pharmacology

Handbook of Psychopharmacology

Susan Iversen

Stephen Dunnett

Anders Bjorklund

The discovery of dopamine in 1957-1958 was one of the seminal events in the development of modern neuroscience, and has been extremely important for the development of modern therapies of neurological and psychiatric disorders. Dopamine has a fundamental role in almost all aspects of behavior: from motor control to mood regulation, cognition and addiction and reward, and dopamine research has been unique within the neurosciences in the way it has bridged basic science and clinical practice. Over the decades research into the role of dopamine in health and disease has been in the forefront of modern neuroscience. The Dopamine Handbook is the first single-volume publication to capture current progress and excitement in this dynamic research field.

Dopamine Handbook

The first six volumes of the Handbook reviewed basic neuropharmacology, drawing on expertise in biochemistry, pharmacology and electrophysiology. The next three volumes focus attention on the functional importance of these basic neuropharmacological mechanisms for normal behavior. In order to study this interface in the intact functioning organism, appropriate methods for describing and quantifying behavior must be developed. The past twenty years have witnessed a revolution in the study of behavior which has taken us away from the often fruitless theoretical arguments to descriptive behaviorism. Technical achievements in the design of apparatus and the recording of behavior played an important role in these and the resultant behavioral methods have been accepted and developments, found useful in studying the effects of drugs. The development of psycho pharmacology as a discipline owes as much to these behavioral methods as it does to the basic neuropharmacological techniques pioneered for in vitro studies. In the first section of Volume 7, an effort has been made to provide reviews both of theory and practice in behavioral science. Milner's chapter deals with the concept of motivation in a theoretical framework. By contrast, the chapters by Morse et ai. and Dews and DeWeese provide a more descriptive view of the various ways in which aversive stimuli control behavior and the importance of schedules of reinforcement in determining the profile of responding in the animal. The equal importance of observational behav ioral methods is well illustrated by Mackintosh et ai.

Drugs, Neurotransmitters, and Behavior

Underlying the design of the Handbook of Psychopharmacology is a prejudice that the study of drug influences on the mind has advanced to a stage where basic research and clinical application truly mesh. These later volumes of the Handbook are structured according to this conception. In certain volumes, groups of drugs are treated as classes with chapters ranging from basic chemistry to clinical application. Other volumes are assembled around topic areas such as anxiety or affective disorders. Thus, besides chapters on individual drug classes, we have included essays addressing broad areas such as "The Limbic-Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal System and Human Be havior" and "Peptides and the Central Nervous System. " Surveying these diverse contributions, one comes away with a sentiment that, far from being an "applied" science borrowing from fundamental brain chemistry and physiology, psychopharmacology has instead provided basic researchers with the tools and conceptual approaches which now are advancing neurobiology to a central role in modern biology. Especially gratifying is the sense that, while contributing to an understanding of how the brain functions, psychopharmacology is a discipline whose fruits offer genuine help to the mentally ill with promises of escalating benefits in the future. L. L. 1. S. D. I. S. H. S. VII CONTENTS CHAPTER 1 Amphetamines: Structure-Activity Relationships J. H. BIEL and B. A. Bopp 1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2: Effects of Biogenic Amines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2. 1. Norepinephrine. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2. 2. Dopamine. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 2. 3. Serotonin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 3. Central Stimulatory Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 3. 1. Phenethylamine Derivatives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Stimulants

Underlying the design of the Handbook of Psychopharmacology is a prejudice that the study of drug influences on the mind has advanced to a stage where basic research and clinical application truly mesh. These later volumes of the Handbook are structured according to this conception. In certain volumes, groups of drugs are treated as classes with chapters ranging from basic chemistry to clinical application. Other volumes are assembled around topic areas such as anxiety or affective disorders. Thus, besides chapters on individual drug classes, we have included essays addressing broad areas such as "The Limbic-Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal System and Human Be havior" and "Peptides and the Central Nervous System. " Surveying these diverse contributions, one comes away with a sentiment that, far from being an "applied" science borrowing from fundamental brain chemistry and physiology, psychopharmacology has instead provided basic researchers with the tools and conceptual approaches which now are advancing neurobiology to a central role in modern biology. Especially gratifying is the sense that, while contributing to an understanding of how the brain functions, psychopharmacology is a discipline whose fruits offer genuine help to the mentally ill with promises of escalating benefits in the future. L. L. 1. S. D. 1. S. H. S. vii CONTENTS CHAPTER 1 Peptides and the Central Nervous System ARTHUR]. PRANGE, ]R. , CHARLES B. NEMEROFF, MORRIS A. LIPTON, GEORGE R. BREESE, and IAN C. WILSON 1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2. Hypothalamic Releasing Hormones: Animal Studies. . . . . 2 2. 1. Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone (TRH, Thyroliberin) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Volume 13 Biology of Mood and Antianxiety Drugs

Amphetamines have had a relatively short, though chequered history. In this book, a leading authority on psychoactive drugs explores the uses and abuses of amphetamines. Eschewing dogma, Iversen presents a fascinating and accessible exposé of recreational and medical amphetamine use.

Leslie Iversen

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