The Brain:
Understanding Neurobiology
Through the Study of Addiction
under a contract from the
National Institutes of Health
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
National Institutes of Health
National Institute on Drug Abuse
Center for Curriculum Development
5415 Mark Dabling Boulevard
Colorado Springs, CO 80918
BSCS Development Team
William Mowczko, Office of Science Education
Nancy M. Landes, Principal Investigator
Cathrine Sasek, National Institute on Drug Abuse
Anne L. Westbrook, Project Director
Gloria Seelman, Office of Science Education
Debra A. Hannigan, Curriculum Developer
Field-test Teachers
Ann C. Lanari, Research Assistant
Domenica Altieri, Sonora High School, La Habra, California
Carol Vallee, Project Assistant
William Barlow, Preston High School, Kingwood, West Virginia
Karen Bertollini, Project Assistant
Gwyn Bush, McNicholas High School, Cincinnati, Ohio
Mary Crist, Project Assistant
Jennifer Carpio, St. Joseph’s Academy, St. Louis, Missouri
Carrie Hamm, Project Assistant
Kathy Cattrell, Crestview High School, Columbiana, Ohio
Raphaela Conner, Project Assistant
Aster Chin, Lowell High School, San Francisco, California
Barbara Perrin, Production Manager
Katy Colvin, Fort LeBoeuf High School, Waterford, Pennsylvania
Ric Bascobert, Editor
Linda Dizer, Girls Preparatory School, Chattanooga, Tennessee
Diane Gionfriddo, Photo Research
Karen Emery, Shady Spring High School, Shady Spring, West Virginia
Lisa Chilberg, Graphic Designer
Fran Enright, Evergreen Senior High School, Evergreen, Colorado
Sandra Matthews, Evaluator
Leon Fox, Perry High School, Perry, Iowa
Videodiscovery, Inc., Development Team
Charlotte Freeman, Girls Preparatory School, Chattanooga, Tennessee
Shaun Taylor, Vice President for Product Development
Marian Gonzalez, Lowell High School, San Francisco, California
Michael Bade, Multimedia Producer/Project Director/Videographer
Paula Henderson, Newark High School, Wilmington, Delaware
Greg Humes, Assistant Multimedia Producer
Wade Hill, Battle Mountain High School, Minturn, Colorado
Cathy Saum, Graphic Designer
John Johnson, Creekview High School, Carrollton, Texas
Lucy Flynn Zuccotti, Photo Research
Karel Lilly, Foshay Learning Center, Los Angeles, California
Michele Moore, Assistant to Project Director
Marilyn Link, North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics,
Jennifer Hunt, Costumes and Makeup
Durham, North Carolina
Mike Commins, Gaffer (Lighting)
Brian McCarry, Monsignor Bonner High School, Drexel Hill,
Chet McKnight, Sound
Pennsylvania
Lee Strucker, Script Writer
Glenn Miller, Wheaton High School, Wheaton, Maryland
Tracy Peterson, Hamilton East High School, Hamilton, New Jersey
Advisory Committee
Kathleen Ranwez, Pomona High School, Arvada, Colorado
Andrea Baruchin, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
Ruth Regent-Smith, Pius XI High School, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Michael Dougherty, Hampden-Sydney College,
Martin Shields, James Caldwell High School, West Caldwell,
Hampden-Sydney, Virginia
New Jersey
David Friedman, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem,
Ann Sowd, Jackson High School, Massillon, Ohio
North Carolina
Sandra Sundlof, Wheaton High School, Wheaton, Maryland
Reese Jones, University of California, San Francisco, California
Kay Thornton, Perry High School, Perry, Iowa
Kathleen Ranwez, Pomona High School, Arvada, Colorado
Linda Wright, Creekview High School, Carrollton, Texas
Cathrine Sasek, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Bethesda, Maryland
Lois Wysocki, Radnor High School, Radnor, Pennsylvania
Martin Shields, James Caldwell High School, West Caldwell, New Jersey
Susan Wooley, American School Health Association, Kent, Ohio
Special Thanks
BSCS and Videodiscovery thank the following individuals for
Writing Team
providing resources or reviewing specific activities in this unit:
Mary Ann Cutter, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, Colorado
Dr. William Armstrong, University of Tennessee;
JoAnne Dombrowski, Consultant, Somerton, Arizona
Dr. Richard Cannon, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute;
Michael Dougherty, Hampden-Sydney College,
Dr. Monica Skarulis, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive
Hampden-Sydney, Virginia
and Kidney Diseases;
David Friedman, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem,
Dr. Michael Phelps, UCLA School of Medicine;
North Carolina
Dr. Johannes Czernin, UCLA School of Medicine;
Paula Henderson, Newark High School, Wilmington, Delaware
David Twomey, UCLA School of Medicine; and
Laura McNicholas, Veterans Affairs Medical Center,
Jim Strommer, UCLA School of Medicine.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
E. Leong Way, University of California San Francisco,
Cover Image Description
San Francisco, California
The cover shows a positron emission tomography (PET) image of
a human brain. Blood flow to a particular brain area, the amygdala,
Artist
increases when a person addicted to cocaine experiences cravings
Susan Bartel
for the drug. The image, when compared with those taken of people
who aren’t addicted to cocaine, reveals that just eliciting memories
Cover Design
of drug abuse in the addicted person is sufficient to cause changes
Martha Blalock, Medical Arts and Photography Branch,
in brain activity.
National Institutes of Health
This material is based on work supported by the National Institutes
Cover Illustration
of Health under Contract No. 263-98-C-0056. Any opinions, find-
Anna Rose Childress, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania
ings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication
School of Medicine
are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the view of
Design and Layout
the funding agency.
Angela Greenwalt, Finer Points Productions
Fourth printing, 2010. Copyright © 2000 by BSCS and Videodis-
Photo Credits
covery, Inc. Third printing, 2004; second printing, 2003. All rights
Carlye Calvin
reserved. You have the permission of BSCS and Videodiscovery,
Inc., to reproduce items in this module for your classroom use.
BSCS Administrative Staff
The copyright on this module, however, does not cover reproduc-
Carlo Parravano, Chairman, Board of Directors
tion of these items for any other use. For permissions and other
Rodger W. Bybee, Executive Director
rights under this copyright, please contact BSCS, 5415 Mark
Janet Carlson Powell, Associate Director, Chief Science
Dabling Blvd., Colorado Springs, CO 80918-3842; www.bscs.org;
Education Officer
info@bscs.org; (719) 531-5550.
Larry Satkowiak, Associate Director, Chief Operating Officer
Revised and reprinted March 2010
Videodiscovery, Inc., Administrative Staff
NIH Publication No. 09-4871 ISBN: 1-929614-05-5
D. Joseph Clark, President
Shaun Taylor, Vice President for Product Development
Please contact the NIH Office of Science
National Institutes of Health
Education with questions about this supplement
Bruce Fuchs, Office of Science Education
Lucinda Miner, National Institute on Drug Abuse
at supplements@science.education.nih.gov.
Contents
Foreword. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v About the National Institutes of Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii About the National Institute on Drug Abuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix The Essence of Drug Addiction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi Introduction to the Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
What Are the Objectives of the Module? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
Why Teach the Module? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
What’s in It for the Teacher? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
Implementing the Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
What Are the Goals of the Module? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
What Are the Science Concepts and How Are They Connected? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
How Does the Module Correlate with the National Science Education Standards?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
Teaching Standards. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Assessment Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
How Does the BSCS 5E Instructional Model Promote Active, Collaborative,
Inquiry-Based Learning? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
Engage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Explore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Explain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Elaborate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Evaluate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
How Does the Module Support Ongoing Assessment? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
How Can Controversial Topics Be Handled in the Classroom? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
Using the Web Site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Hardware and Software Requirements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Getting the Most Out of the Web Site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Collaborative Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
Web Activities for People with Disabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
Using the Student Lessons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Format of the Lessons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Timelines for Teaching the Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
Student Lessons
Lesson 1— The Brain: What’s Going On in There? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
Lesson 2— Neurons, Brain Chemistry, and Neurotransmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41
Lesson 3— Drugs Change the Way Neurons Communicate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
Lesson 4— Drug Abuse and Addiction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Lesson 5— Drug Addiction Is a Disease, So What Do We Do about It? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125
iii
Additional Resources for Teachers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Masters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
iv
Foreword
This curriculum supplement, from The NIH
Activities promote active and collaborative learning
Curriculum Supplement Series, brings cutting-edge
and are inquiry-based to help students develop
medical science and basic research discoveries
problem-solving strategies and critical thinking.
from the laboratories of the National Institutes
of Health (NIH) into classrooms. As the largest
Each curriculum supplement comes with a complete
medical research institution in the United
set of materials for both teachers and students,
States, NIH plays a vital role in the health of
including printed materials, extensive background
all Americans and seeks to foster interest in
and resource information, and a Web site with videos
research, science, and medicine-related careers
and interactive activities. The supplements are
for future generations. NIH’s Office of Science
distributed at no cost to teachers across the United
Education (OSE) is dedicated to promoting
States. All materials may be copied for classroom use
science education and scientific literacy.
but may not be sold.
We designed this curriculum supplement to
For a complete list of curriculum supplements,
complement existing life science curricula at both
updates, availability, and ordering information, or
the state and local levels and to be consistent
to submit feedback, please visit our Web site or
with the National Science Education Standards.1 It
write to
was developed and tested by a team composed of
Curriculum Supplement Series
teachers, scientists, medical experts, and other
Office of Science Education
professionals with relevant subject-area expertise
National Institutes of Health
from institutes and medical schools across
6100 Executive Boulevard
the country, representatives from the National
Suite 3E01 700 MSC 7520
Institute on Drug Abuse, and curriculum design
Bethesda, MD 20892-7520
experts from Biological Sciences Curriculum
Study (BSCS) and Videodiscovery. The authors
We appreciate the valuable contributions of the
incorporated real scientific data and actual case
talented staff at Biological Sciences Curriculum
studies into classroom activities. A three-year
Study (BSCS) and Videodiscovery, Inc. We are also
development process included geographically
grateful to the NIH scientists, advisors, and all other
dispersed field tests by teachers and students.
participating professionals for their work and
For the 2010 (fourth) printing, key sections of
dedication. Finally, we thank the teachers and
the supplement were updated, but the Student
students who participated in focus groups and field
Lessons remain basically the same.
tests to ensure that these supplements are both
engaging and effective. I hope you find our series a
The structure of this module enables teachers
valuable addition to your classroom and wish you a
to effectively facilitate learning and stimulate
productive school year. We welcome your feedback.
student interest by applying scientific concepts
to real-life scenarios. Design elements include
Bruce A. Fuchs, Ph.D.
a conceptual flow of lessons based on the BSCS
Director
5E Instructional Model (page 3), multisubject
Office of Science Education
integration emphasizing cutting-edge science
National Institutes of Health
content, and built-in assessment tools.
supplements@science.education.nih.gov
________________________
1 The National Academy of Sciences released the National Science Education Standards in 1996, outlining what all citizens should understand about science by the time they graduate from high school. The Standards encourages teachers to select major science concepts that empower students to use information to solve problems rather than stressing memorization of unrelated information.
v
About the National Institutes of Health
Begun as the one-room Laboratory of Hygiene
libraries and the training of medical librarians
in 1887, the National Institutes of Health (NIH)
and other health information specialists.
today is one of the world’s foremost biomedical
and behavioral research centers and the federal
Organization
focal point for health research in the United States.
Composed of 27 separate institutes and centers, NIH
is one of eight health agencies of the Public Health
Mission and Goals
Service within the U.S. Department of Health and
The NIH mission is science in pursuit of
Human Services. NIH encompasses 75 buildings
fundamental knowledge about the nature and
on more than 300 acres in Bethesda, Md., as well
behavior of living systems and the application
as facilities at several other sites in the United
of that knowledge to extend healthy life and
States. The NIH budget has grown from about
reduce the burdens of illness and disability.
$300 in 1887 to more than $30 billion in 2009.
The goals of the agency are to
• foster fundamental creative discoveries
Research Programs
and innovative research strategies and
One of NIH’s principal concerns is to invest wisely
their applications as a basis for advancing
the tax dollars entrusted to it for the support and
significantly the nation’s capacity to protect
conduct of this research. Approximately 82 percent
and improve health;
of the investment is made through grants and
• develop, maintain, and renew scientific
contracts supporting research and training in more
resources—both human and physical—that will
than 2,000 research institutions throughout the
ensure the nation’s ability to prevent disease;
United States and abroad. In fact, NIH grantees
• expand the knowledge base in medical and
are located in every state in the country. These
associated sciences in order to enhance the
grants and contracts make up the NIH Extramural
nation’s economic well-being and ensure a
Research Program.
continued high return on the public investment
in research; and
Approximately 10 percent of the budget goes to
• exemplify and promote the highest level of
NIH’s Intramural Research Programs, the more
scientific integrity, public accountability, and
than 2,000 projects conducted mainly in its own
social responsibility in the conduct of science.
laboratories. These projects are central to the NIH
scientific effort. First-rate intramural scientists
NIH works toward meeting those goals by providing
collaborate with one another regardless of institute
leadership, direction, and grant support to programs
affiliation or scientific discipline and have the
designed to improve the health of the nation
intellectual freedom to pursue their research leads
through research into the
in NIH’s own laboratories. These explorations
• causes, diagnosis, prevention, and cure of
range from basic biology to behavioral research,
human diseases;
to studies of treatments for major diseases.
• processes of human growth and development;
• biological effects of environmental
Grant-Making Process
contaminants;
The grant-making process begins with an idea
• understanding of mental, addictive, and
that an individual scientist describes in a written
physical disorders; and
application for a research grant. The project
• collection, dissemination, and exchange of
might be small, or it might involve millions
information in medicine and health, including
of dollars. The project might become useful
the development and support of medical
immediately as a diagnostic test or new treatment,
vii
or it might involve studies of basic biological or
• In 1990, NIH researchers performed the first
behavioral processes whose clinical value may not
trial of gene therapy in humans. Scientists
be apparent for many years.
are increasingly able to locate, identify, and
describe the functions of many of the genes
Each research grant application undergoes peer
in the human genome. The ultimate goal is to
review. A panel of scientific experts, primarily
develop screening tools and gene therapies for
from outside the government, who are active and
the general population for cancer and many
productive researchers in the health sciences first
other diseases.
evaluates the scientific merit of the application.
Then, a national advisory council or board,
Science Education
composed of eminent scientists as well as
Science education by NIH and its institutes and
members of the public who are interested in
centers contributes to ensuring the continued
health issues or the biomedical or behavioral
supply of well-trained basic research and clinical
sciences, determines the project’s overall merit
investigators, as well as the myriad professionals
and priority in advancing the research agenda of
in the many allied disciplines who support the
the particular NIH funding institutes and centers.
research enterprise. These efforts also help
educate people about scientific results so that
About 38,500 research and training applications
they can make informed decisions about their
are reviewed annually throughout the NIH peer-
own—and the public’s—health.
review system. At any given time, NIH supports
35,000 grants in universities, medical schools, and
This curriculum supplement is one such science
other research and research training institutions,
education effort, a collaboration among four
both nationally and internationally.
partners: the NIH National Institute on Drug
Abuse, the NIH Office of Science Education