Important Neurotransmitters to Know for the AP® Psych Exam
Problems with Problems
Neurotransmitter Type Function
Surplus with Deficit
– muscle
function
Acetylcholine Alzheimer’s
Excitatory – learning and Muscle spasms
(ACH) disease
memory
– attention
– mood and
Schizophrenia, Parkinson’s
Dopamine Inhibitory emotion
drug addiction disease
– arousal
– mood
Depression
regulation
Serotonin Inhibitory Hallucinations and mood
– hunger and
disorders
sleep
– arousal and
alertness,
Mental
especially in
disorders,
Norepinephrine Excitatory fight-or-flight Anxiety
specifically
response
depression
– mood
elevation
– brain’s main
Anxiety,
Inhibitory: inhibitory
epilepsy,
prevent neurotransmitter Sleep and
GABA insomnia,
acction – regulates eating disorders
Huntington’s
potatinal sleep-wake
disease
cycles
– brain’s main
excitatory Overstimulation
neurotransmitter of brain, which
Glutamate Excitatory – basis of can cause N/A
learning and migraines and
long-term seizures
memory
Endorphins Inhibitory – pain control Artificial highs, Potential
– stress inadequate involvement
reduction in addiction,
response to
– positive especially
pain
emotions opiates
Agonists and Antagonists
Neurotransmitters don’t always act on their own. Drugs can affect the degree of a
neurotransmitter’s impact. This effect on the neurotransmitter occurs at the synapse.
If a drug increases the effect of a neurotransmitter, it is called an agonist. So if an agonist
acts on an excitatory neurotransmitter, the excitatory effect will increase. Here are some
examples of common agonists:
Caffeine: agonist for ACH.
Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs): agonists for serotonin.
SSRIs increase the amount of serotonin available to the brain, and are
commonly prescribed for depression.
Adderall, methamphetamine, cocaine, and speed: agonists of
norepinephrine. When these drugs increase the excitatory effects of
norepinephrine, they create feelings of euphoria and extreme alertness.
Benzodiazepines and alcohol: agonists of GABA.
Opiates (morphine, oxycodone, heroin, etc.): agonists of endorphins.
If a drug decreases the effect of a neurotransmitter, it is called an antagonist. So if an
antagonist acts on an excitatory neurotransmitter, the excitatory effect will decrease.
Here are some examples of common antagonists:
LSD: antagonist for serotonin.
PCP: antagonist of glutamate. PCP causes a dissociative state that inhibits
memory and learning.
Some drugs that are dopamine antagonists are used to treat psychosis,
schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder.
Be careful: agonists and antagonists do not change the type of change a
neurotransmitter causes. An antagonist will not change an excitatory neurotransmitter
into an inhibitory one; it will just lower the degree of the excitatory response.
