The Basics of Psychopharmacology

In this course, Dr Cyrus Marcellus Ellis, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Governors State University, explains that the overall purpose of studying psychopharmacology is to understand how various medications go into the brain to re-regulate systems that are dysregulated and to make the difference with particular mood disorders. Breaking down the key components of both the “psycho” part of the word and also the “pharmacology” part, Dr Ellis emphasises the role of the brain as the communication centre of the body’s systems. The process of synaptic transmission and the roles of the main neurotransmitters are considered, as is the role of stress in undermining brain chemistry.