Repeated use is likely to result in cocaine addiction. Ī single dose of cocaine induces tolerance to the drug's effects. Cocaine also blocks the serotonin transporter and norepinephrine transporter, inhibiting reuptake of serotonin and norepinephrine from the synaptic cleft into the pre-synaptic axon terminal and increasing activation of serotonin receptors and norepinephrine receptors in the post-synaptic neuron, contributing to the mental and physical effects of cocaine exposure. Cocaine blocks the dopamine transporter, inhibiting reuptake of dopamine from the synaptic cleft into the pre-synaptic axon terminal the higher dopamine levels in the synaptic cleft increase dopamine receptor activation in the post-synaptic neuron, causing euphoria and arousal. Ĭocaine crosses the blood–brain barrier via a proton-coupled organic cation antiporter and (to a lesser extent) via passive diffusion across cell membranes. As cocaine also has numbing and blood vessel constriction properties, it is occasionally used during surgery on the throat or inside of the nose to control pain, bleeding, and vocal cord spasm. Effects begin within seconds to minutes of use and last between five and ninety minutes. ![]() High doses can result in high blood pressure or high body temperature. Physical effects may include a fast heart rate, sweating, and dilated pupils. Mental effects may include an intense feeling of happiness, sexual arousal, loss of contact with reality, or agitation. Ĭocaine stimulates the reward pathway in the brain. It can also then be turned into free base form ( crack cocaine), in which it can be heated until sublimated and then the vapours can be inhaled. ![]() After extraction from the plant, and further processing into cocaine hydrochloride (powdered cocaine), the drug is administered by being either snorted, applied topically to the mouth, or dissolved and injected into a vein. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South America: Erythroxylum coca and E. It is also used in medicine by Indigenous South Americans for various purposes and rarely, but more formally as a local anaesthetic by medical practitioners in more developed countries. ![]() As an extract, it is mainly used recreationally and often illegally for its euphoric effects. Cocaine (from French: cocaïne, from Spanish: coca, ultimately from Quechua: kúka) is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system (CNS) stimulant.
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