PSYCH C61 Chapter Notes - Chapter 9: Morphine, Sympathomimetic Drug, Asthma
11 Mar 2017
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Top 3 best known plant sources of caffeine: coffee (coffea arabica native to northeast africa, tea (camellia sinensis native to east asia, cacao (theobroma cacao, native to s and central america) Guarana (paullinia cupana, native to s america) Yerba mate (ilex paraguariensis native to s america) Most widely used psychoactive drug in the world. Also closely related to caffeine is theobromine: found in cacao, and theophylline: found in tea. Introduced in 1886 as a nonalcoholic beverage. Caffeine og came from kola nut but content has increased since. Caffeine is a powerful stimulant drug acting on the central nervous system (cns) -> increases wakefulness and alertness. Stimulant effects on the cardiovascular system increasing heart rate and blood pressure. Molecular structure is similar to that of dna adenine and guanine precursor molecules. > adenosine plays in the body as a neurotransmitter and caffeine acts at adenosine receptors as an antagonist.
