Antagonist of a chemical- something that works against or decreases the effect of the chemical.
Cytokine- active protein secreted by a cell for the purpose of altering cell fuctions
Dendritic Spines- form part of the network of interlocking neurologic pathways the brain uses to store and retreive memories
Dissociation constant- the inverse of the formation constant, which is the equilibrium constant for the reaction in which ligands replace water molecules in binding to a complex ion. So if the dissociation constant is high, the formation constant is low and fewer ligands are binding with metal ions.
Dopamine- a hormone-like substance that is an important neurotransmitter. In normal amounts it facilitates vital brain functions, but in imbalance it causes serious dysfunction. Dopamine affects processes controlling movement, emotion, and the sense of pleasure and pain. The chemical formula for dopamine is C8H11NO2.
Estradiol- natural hormone, a type of estrogen with chemical formula C18H24O2.
Estrogen receptor- a protein molecule dissolved in the aqueous nuclear medium that is coded for estrogen.
ERK- extracellular-signal-regulated kinase, a type of cytoplasmic enzyme.
Ligand- a molecule or ion that binds to a metal atom or ion through coordination of its lone electron pairs. A coordination complex is formed when a metal ion is surrounded by a group of ligands.
Neurotransmitter- small molecules present in all brain cells that affect the brain activity by interacting with bigger, more complex molecules called receptors.
Negative symptoms- symptoms that involve a lack of behaviors, like a lack of emotion, speech, social interaction or movement.
Neuroleptics- a class of drugs used to treat schizophrenia that work by blockading the dopamine receptors.
Neurotrophins- a family of neurotrophic factors in the brain that encourage neuron differentiation and survival.
NMDA- a neurotransmitter that has some regulatory control over dopamine production
Nucleus accumbens- region of the brain highly associated with dopamine activity.
Prefrontal cortex- a region of the brain that organizes and coordinates information from the cortex
Positive symptoms- symptoms that involve a presence of altered behavior, like delusions, hallucinations, overactivity or incoherent thought and speech.
Serotonin- another neurotransmitter, it has been implicated in many central nervous system disorders. Some of its functions seem to involve memory, appetite, sleep and learning. Its chemical formula is C10H12N2O.
Striatum- a region of the brain that receives input and output from the cortex
Transcription- the process during which the
information in a length of DNA is used to construct an mRNA molecule
Introduction
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Mechanism #4