Name: ________________________________________________________________________________
Date: ________________
The New Science of Addiction: Genetics & the Brain
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Go to http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/addiction/
Click on the “Natural Reward Pathways Exist in the Brain” link
Scroll down to “The Reward Pathway Reinforces Behavior” slideshow – click on the arrows to cycle through the 10 slides. Answer these
questions as you read the slides:
a. What is the central function/job of the reward pathway?
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When you are hungry and you see a sandwich, what does your brain do?
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What is dopamine? How is it related to the reward pathway?
Click on the “back” button, scroll down and click on the link “Drugs Alter the Brain’s Reward Pathway”, click on the “Explore! Drugs of
Abuse” link and answer the following questions:
a. What 5 functions does marijuana use impair?
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What are symptoms of chronic meth usage?
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When taken in large amounts, what are the effects of alcohol?
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Pick another drug from the menu – explain what the effects of it are.
Click on the “back” button, click on the “Explore! Mouse Party” link, click on the “play” link, answer the following questions after you
play:
a. How did meth affect the mouse’s brain?
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How did cocaine affect the mouse’s brain?
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How did LSD affect the mouse’s brain?
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Select one other mouse – what was the drug it took? How was the mouse’s brain affected?
Click on the “back” button, look at the section called, “The Brain’s Coping Mechanism” and answer the following:
a. Why does the brain adapt to the drug abuse?
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Describe the differences between the brain scans of a normal brain and a meth abuser’s brain.
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Scroll down to the “Hardwiring an Addict” section and answer these questions:
a. Why does the brain become hard-wired by the drug?
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Scroll over to the “Changes Last Long After Use” section and follow the directions to see what happens to the brain.
a. What does the brain of a cocaine addict look like after 100 days of being drug-free?
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Scroll down to the “Death by Overdoes” section and click on the “How Drugs Can Kill” link, answer the following questions:
a. What is a polydrug cocktail?
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Explain the three (brain damage, heart attack & overheating) main ways that stimulants kill someone.