Pharm - Introduction To CNS Pharmacology

20 Questions | By Chachelly | Last updated: May 2, 2019

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Pharm - Introduction To CNS Pharmacology

A person that has central nervous system disorders or ailments needs specialized care and specific medication for the various ailments. It is therefore important for a pharmacist or medical practitioner to have adequate information on the various drugs. If you just covered introduction to CNS pharmacology take the test and jog your memory.

Questions and Answers

1.

Which of the following statements regarding CNS drug action on synaptic potentials are correct? (Check all that apply)

Discuss
- A.
  
  A drug-induced EPSP usually makes the membrane potential less negative
- B.
  
  An IPSP may be produced by drugs that cause opening of Cl- channels
- C.
  
  An IPSP may be produced by drugs that cause opening of K+ channels
- D.
  
  Most CNS drugs affect synaptic potential by activating or inhibiting NA+/K+ ATPase
- E.
  
  All drug-induced EPSP and IPSP are very short-lasting potentials (less than 5 milliseconds)
2.

CNS drugs often act on a specific neurotransmitter system. Which of the following statements correctly pairs the system with the drug class that mainly affects it?

Discuss
- A.
  
  Serotonergic system - Opioids
- B.
  
  Cholinergic system - MAO inhibitors
- C.
  
  Dopaminergic system - Phenothiazines
- D.
  
  Noradrenergic system - Benzodiazepines
- E.
  
  GABAergic system - Tricyclic antidepressants
3.

Which of the following statements correctly matches the CNS receptor with the appropriate postreceptor mechanism? (Check all that apply)

Discuss
- A.
  
  M3 muscarinic - decreased NA+ conductance
- B.
  
  Alpha-1 adrenergic - decreased Ca++ conductance
- C.
  
  GABA A - increased Cl- conductance
- D.
  
  Glycine r - decreased Cl- conductance
- E.
  
  NMDA - decreased cation conductance
- F.
  
  Beta-1 adrenergic - increased cAMP
- G.
  
  5-HT3 - increased cation conductance
4.

Some CNS depressant drugs act on a system which is critical in maintaining tonic inhibitory control on most other neuronal systems. Which of the following systems is the target for those drugs?

Discuss
- A.
  
  Noradrenergic
- B.
  
  Serotonergic
- C.
  
  Cholinergic
- D.
  
  Dopaminergic
- E.
  
  GABAergic
- F.
  
  Endorphinergic
5.

Which the following statements related to GABA A and GABA B receptors are correct? (Check all that apply)

Discuss
- A.
  
  GABA A receptors are G-protein coupled receptors
- B.
  
  GABA A receptors activation leads to increased Na+ conductance
- C.
  
  GABA B receptors activation leads to IPSP
- D.
  
  GABA A receptors blockade leads to decreased Cl- conductance
- E.
  
  GABA B receptors blockade leads to increased K+ conductance
6.

A 32-year-old man, recently diagnosed with partial seizure, started a treatment with felbamate, a drug that is thought to act by blocking NMDA receptors in the brain. Which of the following systems was most likely affected by the drug?

Discuss
- A.
  
  Noradrenergic
- B.
  
  Cholinergic
- C.
  
  Histaminergic
- D.
  
  Dopaminergic
- E.
  
  Serotonergic
- F.
  
  GABAergic
- G.
  
  Glutamatergic
7.

A 25-year-old woman presented to the psychiatric hospital describing a one year history of anxiety. She has been feeling tense most of the time, was often irritable and found hard to concentrate because of a great deal of distress. She was prescribed an anxiolytic drug and a cycle of psychotherapy. Which of the following neurotransmitter systems is most likely involved in the therapeutic action of the prescribed drug?

Discuss
- A.
  
  Cholinergic
- B.
  
  Histaminergic
- C.
  
  Glutamatergic
- D.
  
  GABAergic
- E.
  
  Dopaminergic
- F.
  
  Endorphinergic
8.

A 25-year-old woman was brought to the Emergency Room because of a generalized tonic-clonic seizure. Her husband stated that his wife has been suffering from epilepsy since childhood, but the seizures were only partially controlled by medication. Which of the following pairs of neurotransmitters are thought to be mainly involved in seizure disorders?

Discuss
- A.
  
  GABA and serotonin
- B.
  
  GABA and glutamate
- C.
  
  GABA and acetylcholine
- D.
  
  Serotonin and glutamate
- E.
  
  Serotonin and acetylcholine
- F.
  
  Acetylcholine and glutamate
9.

A 34-year-old man who is a heavy smoker started a medical assisted program to quit smoking. Therapy included the administration of clonidine, an agonist at alpha-2 presynaptic receptors which is believed to act mainly on noradrenergic neurons in the brain. Which of the following areas of the brain is the richest in noradrenergic neurons?

Discuss
- A.
  
  Median Raphe Nucleus
- B.
  
  Stria Terminalis
- C.
  
  Locus Ceruleus
- D.
  
  Substantia Nigra
- E.
  
  Thalamus
10.

A 23-year-old woman presented to his physician complaining of a distressing and behavior. For the past months she has experienced an irresistible urge to check that everything was in a certain order at home and found hard to get out of the house because she needed to control that the door was locked again and again. She admitted that she had an irrational fear that things were not perfect. Which of the following neurotransmitter has been most consistently implicated in this disorder?

Discuss
- A.
  
  Acetylcholine
- B.
  
  Norepinephrine
- C.
  
  GABA
- D.
  
  Serotonin
- E.
  
  Glutamate
11.

Receptors located on CNS nerve terminals can be autoreceptors or heteroreceptors. Which of the following descriptions refers to heteroreceptors? (Check all that apply)

Discuss
- A.
  
  5-HT1A receptors on nerve terminals of most neurons of Raphe Nucleus
- B.
  
  M2 cholinergic receptors on the motor nerve terminals
- C.
  
  Alpha-2 receptors on nerve terminals of most neurons of Locus Ceruleus
- D.
  
  D2 receptors on nerve terminals of nigrostriatal pathway
- E.
  
  GABA A receptors on nerve terminals of cortical pyramidal neurons
- F.
  
  Glutamate receptors on nerve terminals mesolimbic pathway
12.

A 45-year-old woman, admitted to a psychiatric hospital, has been standing immobile for several hours with one of his arm stretched upwards. The patient was mute, unresponsive and did not appear aware of her surrounding. When placed in another awkward posture the patient maintained that posture for a long time without apparent distress. .Which of the following neurotransmitter has been consistently implicated in the patient’s syndrome?

Discuss
- A.
  
  Norepinephrine
- B.
  
  Acetylcholine
- C.
  
  Histamine
- D.
  
  Dopamine
- E.
  
  GABA
13.

A 31-year-old woman seeks evaluation in a psychiatric clinic. She reports episodic feeling of sadness since adolescence, but she has noticed a gradual worsening in her mood over the past three weeks. She has depressed mood most of the day, has lost interest in any leisure activity, has difficulty sleeping, poor appetite, low energy, feeling of guilt and recurrent though of death. Which of the following pairs of neurotransmitters are most likely involved in the patient’s disorder?

Discuss
- A.
  
  Glutamate and serotonin
- B.
  
  Norepinephrine and glutamate
- C.
  
  Glutamate and acetylcholine
- D.
  
  Serotonin and norepinephrine
- E.
  
  Serotonin and acetylcholine
- F.
  
  Acetylcholine and norepinephrine
14.

The following table shows the relative activities of five new drugs, which are able to increase the availability of specific CNS neurotransmitters into the synaptic cleft. Examine the table and identify which one of the drugs A, B, C, D, E, is most likely to be effective in the treatment of major obsessive-compulsive disorders. (+ represents the degree of increased availability; - represents negligible effect)

Discuss
- A.
  
  A
- B.
  
  B
- C.
  
  C
- D.
  
  D
- E.
  
  E
15.

A 34-year-old man was brought to the emergency room after a serious car accident. He begun to experience sever pain throughout the body. Which of the following triplets of neurotransmitters most likely acted to decrease pain signaling in this patient?

Discuss
- A.
  
  Norepinephrine, GABA, glutamate
- B.
  
  Glutamate, norepinephrine, opioid peptides
- C.
  
  Histamine, acetylcholine, GABA
- D.
  
  Histamine, acetylcholine, opioid peptides
- E.
  
  Glutamate, GABA, serotonin
- F.
  
  Opioid peptides, norepinephrine, serotonin
16.

A 57-year-old woman, suffering from initial insomnia, was prescribed a hypnotic drug that increases the activity of a major neurotransmitter system in the brain. Which of the following neurotransmitter systems is most likely involved in the therapeutic action of that drug?
- A.
  
  Cholinergic
- B.
  
  Noradrenergic
- C.
  
  Glutamatergic
- D.
  
  GABAergic
- E.
  
  Dopaminergic
- F.
  
  Endorphinergic
17.

A 76-year-old man, suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, was prescribed a drug that increases the central levels of a neurotransmitter thought to play an important role in cognitive functions. Which of the following neurotransmitters was most likely increased by that drug?
- A.
  
  Acetylcholine
- B.
  
  Norepinephrine
- C.
  
  Histamine
- D.
  
  GABA
- E.
  
  Dopamine
18.

A 18-year-old boy was brought to the emergency room by a friend after being found acting crazy in a discotheque. The man admitted he had smoked an “angel dust”, the street name for phencyclidine. Which of the following neurotransmitters seems mainly involved in the mechanism of action of that drug?
- A.
  
  Acetylcholine
- B.
  
  Histamine
- C.
  
  Glycine
- D.
  
  GABA
- E.
  
  Glutamate
19.

A 28-year-old man with a long history of poly-drug abuse states he feels an intense euphoric sensation every time he self administered any illicit drug. Which of the following neurotransmitters, released in the nucleus accumbens, is thought to mediate the rewarding effect of most abused drugs?
- A.
  
  Acetylcholine
- B.
  
  Norepinephrine
- C.
  
  Histamine
- D.
  
  GABA
- E.
  
  Dopamine
20.

A 79-year-old woman complained of sharp headache in the temporal area. Fifteen minutes later she lost consciousness and was brought to the Emergency Room. A CT scan showed a diffuse brain hemorrhage and the diagnosis of left middle cerebral artery stoke was made. Which of the following neurotransmitters has been implicated as a cause of cell death following stroke?

Discuss
- A.
  
  Acetylcholine
- B.
  
  Norepinephrine
- C.
  
  GABA
- D.
  
  Serotonin
- E.
  
  Glutamate

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