A nurse is teaching a class on addiction. Which statement by one of the class participants indicates a need for further teaching?
a. "Addictive drugs lead to dopamine release in amounts similar to those released by normal reward circuits."
b. "Neural remodeling leads to decreased dopamine release, leaving users with feelings of lifelessness and depression."
c. "Over time, the brain will develop reduced responses to many addictive drugs."
d. "With the use of a drug over time, the brain undergoes synaptic remodeling."
ANS: A
Drugs of addiction use the same reward circuits that are used to reward biologically critical behaviors such as eating and sexual intercourse. However, addictive drugs lead to dopamine release that can be 2 to 10 times higher than that released naturally. Eventually, neural remodeling occurs, causing the brain to produce less dopamine and to reduce the number of dopamine receptors, leaving addicts feeling depressed and lifeless. This process of down-regulation reduces the response to the drug. All of this is part of the synaptic remodeling that occurs when the brain is exposed to a drug over a period of time.
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