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Psychopharmacology:
Drugs, the Brain, and Behavior Jerrold S. Meyer, Linda F. Quenzer |
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"The present book
grew out of a more advanced text, Principles of Neuropsychopharmacology,
authored by us together with our former colleague and mentor, Robert S. Feldman
(now retired). However, Psychopharmacology: Drugs, the Brain, and
Behavior is much more than just a
condensed and updated version of our earlier book. We has striven to engage
your interest with a variety of new features, including chapter-opening vignettes,
breakout boxes presenting novel or cutting-edge topics for special
discussion, and many full-color photographs and illustrations depicting
important concepts and experimental data. We have also used a balanced
approach to convey the full breadth of our field, ranging from historical
accounts of drug use, to clinical and preclinical behavioral studies, to the
latest research on drug receptors and on drug effects in genetically
engineered mice. Psychopharmacology:
Drugs, the Brain, and Behavior is divided into four
sections. Chapters 1 through 4 provide extensive
foundation materials, including the basic principles of pharmacology,
neurophysiology and neuroanatomy, synaptic
transmission, and research methods in psychopharmacology. Chapters 5
through 7 describe key features of major neurotransmitter systems,
including the catecholamines, serotonin,
acetylcholine, glutamate, and GABA. These are the neurotransmitters most
commonly associated with psychoactive drug effects Chapters 8 through 15
discuss theories of drug addiction, with comprehensive coverage of all major
substances of abuse. Chapters 16 through 18 consider the
biochemical bases of psychopathology and the drugs used to treat disorders of
mood, anxiety disorders, and schizophrenia. There is an outline at the
beginning of each chapter that shows the organization of the chapter. These
outlines should be useful to instructors for determining class reading
assignments and to students for identifying the major topics covered in each
chapter. Although the use of
psychoactive drugs is not a recent phenomenon, never before has a society
become so dependent on these substances, whether for their mood altering
properties in recreational settings or for the remarkable benefits they
provide to so many psychiatric patients. Psychopharmacology: Drugs, the
Brain, and Behavior will help you understand the characteristics of
psychoactive drugs, their psychological and behavioral effects, and the
mechanisms by which such effects occur. We trust that you will enjoy reading
the book as much as we have enjoyed writing it." From the Preface |
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