PSYC62H3 Lecture Notes - Miriam Webster, Nuremberg Code, Drug Discovery
Document Summary
Pharmacology: discipline that examines the effects that drugs have on biological systems (including nervous and non- nervous tissues). How drugs act on other biological systems (pharmacokinetics) Psychopharmacology: discipline that examines the effects that drugs have on behavior and mental processes, including cognitions and emotions. Focus on the brain and nerve cells distinguishes course in pharmacology. Drug: a substance or chemical that, when injested/injected for the purpose of altering biological function, affects one or more biological processes. Other things also affect the structure and function of body like food, minerals, etc. but they are not considered drugs. Psychoactive drugs: chemicals that induce psychological effects by altering the normal biochemical reactions that take place in the nervous system (grilly and salamone, 2011) Psychoactive drugs: largely mimic endogenous substances but outside the normal range. Humans have used drugs for the purposes of altering mood and behaviour for thousands of years. A revolution in psychopharmacology was observed in the mid-20th century.
