LCAS Pharmacology of Addictive Substances 3

Question 1

Which FDA-approved medication for alcohol use disorder reduces cravings by blocking opioid receptors involved in alcohol's rewarding effects?

Accepted Answer

Naltrexone (Vivitrol/ReVia)

Answer

Disulfiram (Antabuse)

Answer

Acamprosate (Campral)

Answer

Methadone

Question 2

Acamprosate (Campral) reduces alcohol craving and post-acute withdrawal discomfort primarily by:

Accepted Answer

Modulating the glutamate-GABA imbalance that persists into early recovery

Answer

Creating an aversive physical reaction to alcohol consumption

Answer

Blocking dopamine D2 receptors in the reward pathway

Answer

Inhibiting alcohol dehydrogenase to slow alcohol metabolism

Question 3

Disulfiram (Antabuse) deters alcohol use through which pharmacological mechanism?

Accepted Answer

It inhibits aldehyde dehydrogenase, causing toxic acetaldehyde accumulation when alcohol is consumed

Answer

It reduces alcohol cravings by modulating dopamine signaling

Answer

It antagonizes opioid receptors to block alcohol's rewarding effects

Answer

It enhances GABA activity to reduce alcohol-associated anxiety

Question 4

In addiction pharmacology, 'cross-tolerance' is best defined as:

Accepted Answer

Tolerance to one drug that extends to other pharmacologically similar drugs, enabling substitution

Answer

Tolerance developed by using multiple routes of administration for the same drug

Answer

Increased drug sensitivity that develops after a period of abstinence

Answer

Variation in drug tolerance across different cultural or ethnic populations

Question 5

The pharmacological concept of 'half-life' is best described as:

Accepted Answer

The time required for the plasma concentration of a drug to decrease by 50%

Answer

The time for a drug to reach peak plasma concentration after administration

Answer

The minimum effective dose needed to produce a therapeutic response

Answer

The period during which a drug produces its maximum addictive potential

Question 6

Varenicline (Chantix) aids smoking cessation by which mechanism?

Accepted Answer

Acting as a partial agonist at α4β2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors

Answer

Delivering a safer form of nicotine to satisfy cravings

Answer

Blocking nicotine's effects through mu-opioid receptor antagonism

Answer

Increasing dopamine release through a nicotine-independent pathway

Question 7

Which statement about methamphetamine's pharmacology is most accurate?

Accepted Answer

Methamphetamine causes massive dopamine release from presynaptic terminals and blocks reuptake

Answer

Methamphetamine acts exclusively on dopamine receptors without affecting other monoamines

Answer

Methamphetamine's euphoric effects are shorter in duration than those of cocaine

Answer

Methamphetamine is metabolized more rapidly than cocaine, explaining its shorter action