NURS-6630 Wk 1 Discussion: Foundational Neuroscience
Walden University NURS-6630 Wk 1 Discussion: Foundational Neuroscience-Step-By-Step Guide
This guide will demonstrate how to complete the Walden University NURS-6630 Wk 1 Discussion: Foundational Neuroscience assignment based on general principles of academic writing. Here, we will show you the A, B, Cs of completing an academic paper, irrespective of the instructions. After guiding you through what to do, the guide will leave one or two sample essays at the end to highlight the various sections discussed below.
How to Research and Prepare for NURS-6630 Wk 1 Discussion: Foundational Neuroscience
Whether one passes or fails an academic assignment such as the Walden University NURS-6630 Wk 1 Discussion: Foundational Neuroscience depends on the preparation done beforehand. The first thing to do once you receive an assignment is to quickly skim through the requirements. Once that is done, start going through the instructions one by one to clearly understand what the instructor wants. The most important thing here is to understand the required format—whether it is APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.
After understanding the requirements of the paper, the next phase is to gather relevant materials. The first place to start the research process is the weekly resources. Go through the resources provided in the instructions to determine which ones fit the assignment. After reviewing the provided resources, use the university library to search for additional resources. After gathering sufficient and necessary resources, you are now ready to start drafting your paper.
How to Write the Introduction for NURS-6630 Wk 1 Discussion: Foundational Neuroscience
The introduction for the Walden University NURS-6630 Wk 1 Discussion: Foundational Neuroscience is where you tell the instructor what your paper will encompass. In three to four statements, highlight the important points that will form the basis of your paper. Here, you can include statistics to show the importance of the topic you will be discussing. At the end of the introduction, write a clear purpose statement outlining what exactly will be contained in the paper. This statement will start with “The purpose of this paper…” and then proceed to outline the various sections of the instructions.
How to Write the Body for NURS-6630 Wk 1 Discussion: Foundational Neuroscience
After the introduction, move into the main part of the NURS-6630 Wk 1 Discussion: Foundational Neuroscience assignment, which is the body. Given that the paper you will be writing is not experimental, the way you organize the headings and subheadings of your paper is critically important. In some cases, you might have to use more subheadings to properly organize the assignment. The organization will depend on the rubric provided. Carefully examine the rubric, as it will contain all the detailed requirements of the assignment. Sometimes, the rubric will have information that the normal instructions lack.
Another important factor to consider at this point is how to do citations. In-text citations are fundamental as they support the arguments and points you make in the paper. At this point, the resources gathered at the beginning will come in handy. Integrating the ideas of the authors with your own will ensure that you produce a comprehensive paper. Also, follow the given citation format. In most cases, APA 7 is the preferred format for nursing assignments.
How to Write the Conclusion for NURS-6630 Wk 1 Discussion: Foundational Neuroscience
After completing the main sections, write the conclusion of your paper. The conclusion is a summary of the main points you made in your paper. However, you need to rewrite the points and not simply copy and paste them. By restating the points from each subheading, you will provide a nuanced overview of the assignment to the reader.
How to Format the References List for NURS-6630 Wk 1 Discussion: Foundational Neuroscience
The very last part of your paper involves listing the sources used in your paper. These sources should be listed in alphabetical order and double-spaced. Additionally, use a hanging indent for each source that appears in this list. Lastly, only the sources cited within the body of the paper should appear here.
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Sample Answer for NURS-6630 Wk 1 Discussion: Foundational Neuroscience
Understanding major concepts within foundational neuroscience is crucial for psychiatric and mental health nurse practitioner. One key topic is the agonist-to-antagonist spectrum of action for psychopharmacologic agents, which includes the concept of partial and inverse agonist functionality impacting the efficacy of psychopharmacologic treatments. Psychopharmacologic agents can be agonists, which means that they bind to and activate specific neurotransmitter receptors in a way that mimics the function of an endogenous ligand. Antagonists bind to receptors but do not activate them, which serves to block the effects of endogenous ligands as well as agonist drugs. Partial agonists activate receptors only partially, resulting in a lesser degree of activation relative to full agonists. Inverse agonists are those that bind to the same receptor as a relevant agonist but function to decrease the receptor’s activation rather than increasing it or merely blocking its activation by endogenous ligands. Partial agonists are, in some cases, preferred over full agonists because they often have fewer unintended side effects (Prus, 2020). Inverse agonists can be useful for treating conditions like anxiety that are characterized by the excess activation of certain receptors.
Another key topic is the similarities and differences between g couple proteins and ion gated channels. Both are central nervous system receptor proteins. G coupled proteins are metabotropic receptors. They function to activate intracellular signaling pathways, which causes changes in cellular functioning. Ion gated channels are ionotropic receptors that control ions entering and exiting cells, which impacts membrane potential (Cournia & Chatzigoulas, 2020). G coupled proteins impact protein synthesis and gene expression, and they have relatively more prolonged but slower effects than iron gated channels (Prus, 2020). Ion gated channels bring about quick but shortchanges and can impact neurotransmitter release.
Epigenetics may have a role in impacting pharmacologic action. A common epigenetic modification is DNA methylation: a process involving the addition of methyl groups to molecules of DNA, changing a DNA segment’s activity without altering its sequence (Corley et al., 2021). The methylation of genes that control the encoding of neurotransmitter receptors, for example, can limit how many receptors are present (Prus, 2020). This reduces the efficacy of any drugs that operate on the receptors.
All of these topics and concepts may impact the way that a psychiatric and mental health nurse practitioner would prescribe medication to patients. For example, Benzodiazepines are a common class of drugs used to treat anxiety. They target the GABA-A receptor, which is responsive to GABA: the most significant inhibitory neurotransmitter. GABA functions to limit neuronal excitability, promoting (in a very general sense) relaxation. GABA-A agonists like benzodiazepines activate GABA-A receptors in a way that mimics the effect of GABA, which makes them useful for anxiety (Prus, 2020). However, because benzodiazepines are full agonists, there is a greater risk of side effects including tolerance and dependence. Buspirone, which operates on different receptors, is only a partial agonist and does not come with the same degree of risk for dependence as benzodiazepines (Ochi et al., 2021). Despite the fact that it tends to have weaker efficacy, Buspirone may be preferred by a practitioner who understands foundational neuroscience because of its reduced side effects.
- Explain the agonist-to-antagonist spectrum of action of psychopharmacologic agents, including how partial and inverse agonist functionality may impact the efficacy of psychopharmacologic treatments.
An agonist produces a conformational change in the G-protein-linked receptor that turns on the synthesis of the second messenger to the greatest extent possible. The full agonist is generally transmitted by the naturally occurring neurotransmitter itself. Hence, downstream proteins are maximally phosphorylated, and genes are maximally impacted. (Stahl, 2021; Pleuvry, 2004)
There are two ways to stimulate the G proteins directly with full agonist action. First, several drugs directly bind to the neurotransmitter site on the G protein-linked receptor itself and can produce the same signal transduction as a full agonist. For example, the G-protein receptor and pharmacological subtype directly targeted by antipsychotic or antimanic drugs for the neurotransmitter dopamine is the D2. Secondly, many drugs can indirectly act to boost the levels of the natural full agonist neurotransmitter, and this increased amount of natural agonist binds to the neurotransmitter site of the G protein-linked receptor. For example, the G protein-linked receptor and pharmacological subtype indirectly by dopamine reuptake inhibitors (e.g., amphetamine, Adderall) are D1, D2, D3, D4, and D5 (Stahl, 2021; Pleuvry, 2004)
On the other hand, when blocking the action of the natural neurotransmitter, this is called antagonists. Antagonists
produce a confrontational change in the G protein-linked receptors that causes no signal transduction and blocks the action of everything in the agonist spectrum. In short, the antagonists will block both agonists and partial agonists (Pleuvry, 2004; Stahl, 2021)
Meanwhile, Partial agonists produce signal transduction that is something more than antagonists but less than full agonists. Depending upon how close this partial agonist is to a full agonist or to silent antagonists on the agonist spectrum will determine the impact of a partial agonist on downstream signal transduction events. (Pleuvry, 2004; Stahl, 2021)
Ion gated channels are key targets of many psychotropic drugs. There are two main types of ion-gated channels: ligand-gated ion channels and voltage-sensitive ion channels. The opening of ligand gated-ion channels is regulated by neurotransmitters whereas the opening of voltage-sensitive ion channels is regulated by the charge across the membrane in which they reside. Ligand-gated ion channels are both ion channels are receptors and are commonly called inotropic receptors. Ligands act at a ligand-gated ion channel across an agonist’s spectrum from full to partial, to antagonists, and to an inverse agonist. The most common sub-types of volume-sensitive ion channels are the voltage-sensitive sodium channels and the voltage-calcium channels (Stahl, 2021)
- Compare and contrast the actions of g couple proteins and ion gated channels.
Comparison of G-Protein receptors directly and indirectly targeted (Stahl, 2021)
Neurotransmitters |
G-Protein receptor directly targeted |
Action |
G-Protein receptor indirectly targeted |
Action |
Acetylcholine |
M1 M4 M2/3 M5 |
Agonist Antagonist Agonist ? |
M1 (Possibly M2-M5) |
Agonist via increasing acetylcholine via acetylcholinesterase inhibition |
GABA |
GABA-B |
Agonist |
|
|
Glutamate |
|
|
|
|
Serotonin |
5HT2A
5HT1B/1D
5HT2C 5HT6 5HT7 5HT1A |
Antagonist or Inverse Agonist, and agonist
Antagonist or partial agonist
Antagonist ? Antagonist Partial Agonist |
5HT1A
5HT2A
5HT2A/2C |
Agonist by SSRIs/SNRIs
Agonist
Agonist by MDMA
|
Dopamine |
D2 |
Antagonist or Partial agonist |
D1, D2, D3, D4, D5 |
Agonist actions by dopamine reuptake inhibitors |
Norepinephrine |
Alpha 1
Alpha 2 |
Antagonist
Antagonist/Agonist |
All NE receptors |
Norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors |
Melatonin |
MT1
MT2 |
Agonist
Agonist |
|
|
Histamine |
H1
H2 |
Antagonist
Antagonist/Inverse agonist |
|
|
COMPARISON OF LIGAND-GATED ION CHANNEL RECEPTOR SUBTYPE DIRECTLY TARGETED (Stahl, 2021)
Neurotransmitter |
Ligand-gate ion channel receptor subtype directly targeted |
Action |
Acetylcholine |
Alpha4, Beta2, nicotinic |
Partial agonist |
GABA |
GABA A benzo receptors
GABA A benzo PAM sites
GABA A nonsteroid sites |
Full agonist phasic inhibition
Full agonist phasic inhibition
Full agonist, tonic inhibition |
GLUTAMATE |
NMDA
NMDA open-channel sites |
Antagonist
Antagonist |
SEROTONIN |
5HT3
5HT3 |
ANTAGONIST
ANTAGONIST |
- Explain how the role of epigenetics may contribute to pharmacologic action.
Epigenetics is the idea that a gene function may be changed without a specific alteration in the code, and this change in gene function may also be heritable (Stern, et. al., 2016). Frequently, this may occur by a change in the structure of the DNA molecule: for example, chromatin, around the gene, which alters gene expression. Epigenetics control whether a gene is read (expressed) or is not read (i.e., silenced), which is done by the structure of chromatin. Chemical modifications that can do this include not only methylation, but also acetylation, phosphorylation, other drugs, and the environment. The initial epigenetic pattern of a neuron is set during neurodevelopment to give each neuron its own lifelong personality, it now appears that some neurons respond to their narrative of experiences throughout life (child abuse, stress, dietary deficiencies, medications, psychotherapy, drug use,) with a changing character arc, hence causing alteration in their epigenome. Moreover, it now seems that silenced genes can be activated and activated genes can be silenced. When this happens, both favorable and unfavorable developments. Favorable developments may trigger a person to be able to learn or to experience the therapeutic effects of the drugs. On the other hand, unfavorable mechanisms may be triggered for one to become addicted to a drug or to experience abnormal learning (Stahl, 2021; Stefanska & MacEwan, 2015)
- Explain how this information may impact the way you prescribe medications to patients. Include a specific example of a situation or case with a patient in which the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner must be aware of the medication’s action.
As a future nurse practitioner, gaining knowledge about the agonist-antagonist spectrum is really at par with knowing the disease process. Being knowledgeable of the agonist-antagonist spectrum helps a provider understand the mechanism of one drug and its side or adverse effects. For example, typical antipsychotic drugs primarily target D2 receptors in the mesolimbic pathway (Stern, et. al., 2016; Keltner, 2018, which treat positive psychotic symptoms (hallucination, delusion, ambivalence, etc.). However, typical antipsychotics also affect other receptors (D1, D3, D4, and D5) in other ways such as the nigrostriatal pathway, which causes the onset of extrapyramidal symptoms, NMS, and Parkinson-like effects. In situations such as this, a practitioner may be able to anticipate prescribing dopamine agonists like amantadine (Symmetrel) to control the EPS or switch to atypical antipsychotics, which have lower EPS and NMS adverse effects (Stern, et. al; Keltner, 2018)
References
Keltner, N. (2018). Psychiatric Nursing. 8th ed. Elsevier
Pleuvry, B. (2004). Receptors, Agonist, and Antagonist. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1472029906003845
Stefanska, B., & MacEwan, D. (2015). Epigenetics and Pharmacology. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4439868/
Stern, T., et. al. (2016). Massachusetts General Hospital Psychopharmacology and Neurotherapeutics. 1st ed. Elsevier
Stahl, S. (2021). Stahl’s Essential Psychopharmacology: Neuroscientific Basis and Practical Application. 5th ed. Cambridge