Unit ELEMENTS OF PHARMACOLOGY FOR PSYCHOLOGISTS
- Course
- Assessment of individual functioning in clinical and health psychology
- Study-unit Code
- A001620
- Curriculum
- Curriculum i
- Teacher
- Oxana Bereshchenko
- Teachers
-
- Oxana Bereshchenko
- Hours
- 36 ore - Oxana Bereshchenko
- CFU
- 6
- Course Regulation
- Coorte 2024
- Offered
- 2025/26
- Learning activities
- Affine/integrativa
- Area
- Attività formative affini o integrative
- Academic discipline
- BIO/14
- Type of study-unit
- Obbligatorio (Required)
- Type of learning activities
- Attività formativa monodisciplinare
- Language of instruction
- Italian
- Contents
- General principles of drug action: -Pharmacokinetics -Pharmacodynamics -Main classes of drugs that act on the central nervous system.
- Reference texts
- Meyer. Psicofarmacologia. EDI_ERMES Carlo Faravelli. Farmacologia per I psicologi. Il Mulino Karen Whalen. Le basi della farmacologia. Zanichelli Robert Julien. Droghe e farmaci psicoattivi. Zanichelli Francesco Clementi, Guido Fumagalli. General and molecular pharmacology
- Educational objectives
- The lessons are aimed at studying the psychotropic drugs and providing the psychologist-psychotherapist with tools that can be of help in managing the patient.¿The course provides the student with an overview of the psychoactive molecules, from the drugs used in the treatment of the main psychological-psychiatric disorders, to the substances of abuse including those used for recreative purposes and as innovative therapies.
- Prerequisites
- The course makes numerous connections with clinical psychology, psychiatry, neuroscience and neuroanatomy, so good basic knowledge related to Physiology, Neurophysiology and Psychiatry is needed.
- Teaching methods
- Frontal lectures
- Learning verification modality
- Written quiz. 24 Multiple choice questions plus One open question.¿ Four or Five possible answers of which only one is correct.¿ Exam duration 30 minutes.¿ The evaluation criteria will be based on the understanding of the topics covered, on the acquisition of the proposed concepts and methodologies and on the ability to apply them independently and consciously.
- Extended program
- A brief history of pharmacology. Definitions: pharmacology, drugs, psychotropic drugs. Therapeutic, collateral, adverse effects. General pharmacology. ¿Pharmacokinetics. Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism and Elimination of Drugs. Methods of drug administration. Emivity. Frequency of drug administration. Pharmacodynamics: Drug-receptor interactions. Dose-response curve. Potency, Efficacy, Therapeutic Index. Agonist-antagonist definitions. Competitive and non-competitive antagonists. The effects of chronic drug use. Tolerance. Types of tolerance. Dependency. Types of key receptors on which psychotropic drugs act directly. Ionotropic, metabotropic receptors. G protein-coupled receptors. Tyrosine kinase receptors. Signal translation cascade.¿ Structure of the nerve cell. Definitions - cell, neuron, synapse, soma, dendrites, axon, axon buttons. Chemical neurotransmission. Anatomical and chemical bases of neurotransmission. Excitation-secretion coupling. ¿Synapse pharmacology: Mechanisms by which drugs can interfere with synaptic transmission. The mechanisms of neurotransmitter inactivation. Autonomic nervous system. Sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system. Neurotransmitters involved. Cholinergic system, increased functions of cholinergic neurons. Synthesis and degradation of acetylcholine. Acetylcholine receptors. Mechanisms of action of agonists and antagonists of the cholinergic system. Dopaminergic system. Noradrenergic system. Serotonergic system. Excitatory amino acid-mediated neurotransmission (Glutamate). Inhibitory amino acid-mediated neurotransmission (GABAergic System). ¿ Main classes of drugs of the central nervous system. Anxiolytic and sedative-hypnotic drugs. Barbiturates. Benzodiazepines. Efficacy, side effects and toxicity. Tolerance and dependence. ¿ Antidepressant drugs. Definitions. Level of effectiveness. Common side effects. Types of antidepressants: Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs); Tricycle antidepressants (TCAs); Serotonin uptake inhibitors (SSRIs); Other antidepressants. Mechanisms of action. Directions. Effects. Antipsychotic drugs. Neuroleptics: Mechanisms of action. Effects. Atypical antipsychotics: Mechanisms of action, Neurological effects. Mood stabilizers. Endogenous Opioid System and Opioid Drugs. Mechanism of action. Receptors. Examples of opioid drugs and their use. Adverse reactions. Abstinence. Dependency. ¿ Psychostimulants and drugs of abuse. Mechanisms of action of the main drugs of abuse. Definitions Tolerance, dependence. Psychomotor stimulants: cocaine and amphetamines. Cannabis. Psychodelics. Adverse effects and possible therapeutic uses. Gender pharmacology. Pharmacology for Psychologists: What We Can and Can't Expect from Medications, How They Can Help or Interfere with Work
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