Neuropsychopharmacology: An Overview

^*Correspondence: Jennifer Hague, Department of Neurology, Agnes Scott College, Decatur, Georgia, USA, Email:

Description

Neuropsychopharmacology is the study of the brain pathways that medications work on to alter behaviour. It is an interdisciplinary discipline that is related to psychopharmacology (how drugs affect the mind) and fundamental neuroscience. Mechanisms of neuropathology, pharmacodynamics (drug action), psychiatric disease, and states of consciousness are all investigated. These investigations focus on neurotransmission/receptor activation, biochemical processes, and brain architecture at a finer level. In terms of "how" and "why," neuropsychopharmacology outperforms psychopharmacology, and it also covers other aspects of brain activity. As a result, psychiatric (psychoactive) and neurologic (non-psychoactive) pharmacology-based treatments are included in the clinical part of the area. Anxiety disorders, affective disorders, psychotic disorders, degenerative disorders, eating behaviour, and sleep behaviour may all be affected by advances in neuropsychopharmacology [1-3].

Humans have used drugs like opium, alcohol, and certain plants to relieve suffering and change awareness for millennia, but knowledge of how the substances actually worked was limited until the modern scientific era, with most pharmacological knowledge being more of a series of observations than a coherent model. Psychology and psychiatry were essentially phenomenological in the first half of the twentieth century, with behaviours or themes noticed in patients often being attributed to a small number of factors such as early experience, hereditary dispositions, or injury to specific brain areas. Such insights were used to develop models of mental function and malfunction. Indeed, the behavioural branch of psychology ignored what happened within the brain entirely, dismissing most mental disorders as "software" faults. The nervous system was being investigated at a microscopic and chemical level at the same time, but there was little overlap with clinical sciences until significant advances following World War II began to bring them together. The discovery of medications like MAO inhibitors, tricyclic antidepressants, thorazine, and lithium, which demonstrated some clinical specificity for mental diseases including depression and schizophrenia, is thought to have started neuropsychopharmacology in the early 1950s. Treatments that actually targeted these complex disorders were essentially non-existent until that time [4].

Neuropsychopharmacology is the outcome of the expansion and extension of many formerly isolated fields that have converged at the centre of psychiatric care, and it involves a diverse group of specialists ranging from psychiatrists to genetics and chemistry researchers. Since 1990, when various journals and institutes, such as the Hungarian College of Neuropsychopharmacology, were founded, the term has grown in usage. Because study ideas are frequently reorganised depending on new knowledge, this fast expanding discipline is in flux. These enable for the monitoring and measurement of brain activity in response to a range of test situations. Radiological imaging, such as positron emission tomography (PET) and single-photon emission computed tomography, are also significant observational methods (SPECT). These imaging techniques are exceedingly sensitive, allowing them to view molecular concentrations as low as 1010 M, such as those observed in the extrastriatal D1 dopamine receptor [5].

One of the long-term objectives is to conceive and develop therapy prescriptions for a variety of neuropathological and psychiatric illnesses. However, the knowledge gathered may provide insight into the nature of human mind, mental capacities such as learning and memory, and possibly consciousness itself. The information base required to generate medications that act on very specific receptors within a neurotransmitter system is a direct result of neuropsychopharmacological research. These "hyperselective-action" medications would allow for the direct targeting of certain regions of relevant brain activity, maximising efficacy (or technically potency) while limiting side effects within the therapeutic target. However, in other circumstances, pharmaceutical promiscuity is bearable and even desirable, resulting in more desirable outcomes than a more selective agent would. Vortioxetine, for example, is a drug that is not particularly selective as a serotonin reuptake inhibitor and has a significant amount of serotonin modulatory activity, but has shown reduced discontinuation symptoms (and a lower risk of relapse) as well as a significantly lower incidence of sexual dysfunction without sacrificing antidepressant efficacy.

The framework for the next generation of pharmacological treatments is presently being laid, which will improve quality of life while enhancing efficiency. For example, contrary to popular belief, the adult brain does develop new neurons to some extent—research into which, in addition to neurotrophic factors, may hold promise for neurodegenerative illnesses such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, ALS, and chorea. The proteins involved in neurotransmission make up a small percentage of the brain's 100,000+ proteins. As a result, even if a protein is not in the primary path of signal transduction, it could still be a target for targeted therapy. Novel pharmacological approaches to diseases or ailments are being reported at a pace of nearly one per week at the moment [6].

Conflict of Interests

None.

References

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