Foundational Neuroscience Discussion

Explain the agonist-to-antagonist spectrum of action of psychopharmacologic agents.
Compare and contrast the actions of g couple proteins and ion gated channels.
Explain the role of epigenetics in pharmacologic action.
Explain how this information may impact the way you prescribe medications to clients. Include a specific example of a situation or case with a client in which the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner must be aware of the medication’s action. Foundational Neuroscience Discussion

Note: Please follow above directions. References should be less than 5 years old
Explain the agonist-to-antagonist spectrum of action of psychopharmacologic agents.

The agonist-to-antagonist spectrum refers to how receptors and drugs interact. An agonist stimulates receptors by acting in a manner similar to naturally occurring neurotransmitters. In contrast, an antagonist inhibits the stimulation of a neurotransmitter by hindering the actions of agonists as well as other naturally occurring agonists. The spectrum includes partial agonists whose action is similar to agonists although they elicit a weak response. It also includes inverse agonists that act contrary to agonists by blocking receptors. Weak inverse agonists only block some of the receptors and leave others open for interactions with agonists (Stahl, 2013).

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Compare and contrast the actions of g couple proteins and ion gated channels.

g couple proteins and ion gated channels are located in the plasma membrane where they act as extracellular sensors and receptors to facilitate cellular communication. g couple protein is particularly responsible for attaching molecules as signals for the cell, working in concert with other messenger molecules by either stimulating or inhibiting their activities. On the other hand, ion gated channels facilitate the movement of ions across the cell membrane without requiring medication by other messenger molecules (Ehlert, 2015).

Explain the role of epigenetics in pharmacologic action.

Epigenetics modify pharmacological action through causing changes to drug metabolism and responses, as well as inducing adverse reactions. Epigenetics achieves this by influencing gene action by changing their switching off and on, fine-tuning their action, and changing their activation (Stefanska & MacEwan, 2015). Through changing gene action, epigenetics is able to achieve phenotypic action of the cells with matching changes to how the cells respond to pharmacological agents (Ivanov, Barragan & Ingelman-Sundberg, 2014).

Explain how this information may impact the way you prescribe medications to clients. Include a specific example of a situation or case with a client in which the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner must be aware of the medication’s action.

Firstly, the agonist-to-antagonist spectrum influences prescription activities by determining how symptoms are addressed. If an agonist achieves a particular effect, then achieving the opposite effect would be possible by using an inverse agonist while achieving a light effect would be possible by using a partial agonist (Stahl, 2013). Secondly, g couple proteins and ion gated channels determine how medication interact with cells to either inhibit or improve that interaction (Ehlert, 2015). Finally, epigenetics is useful in exploring the individual factors that influence drug action and responses (Ivanov, Barragan & Ingelman-Sundberg, 2014). Foundational Neuroscience Discussion

References

Ehlert, F. (2015). Affinity and efficacy: the components of drug-receptor interactions. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing.

Ivanov, M., Barragan, I. & Ingelman-Sundberg, M. (2014). Epigenetic mechanisms of importance for drug treatment. Trends in Pharmacological Sciences, 35(8), 384-396.

Stahl, S. (2013). Stahl’s essential psychopharmacology: neuroscientific basis and practical applications (4th ed.). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

Stefanska, B. & MacEwan, D. (2015). Epigenetics and pharmacology. Br. J. Pharmacology, 172(11), 2701-2704.

Foundational Neuroscience Discussion