Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder01:30

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

1.3K
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by persistent inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. It affects approximately 5-8% of children globally, with around 60-70% of cases persisting into adulthood. ADHD has significant implications for educational attainment, social interactions, and occupational success.
Diagnostic Criteria and Symptoms
To diagnose ADHD, symptoms must manifest before age 12 and be evident across multiple settings....
1.3K
Adrenergic Agonists: Indirect-Acting Agents01:25

Adrenergic Agonists: Indirect-Acting Agents

3.0K
Indirect-acting adrenergic agonists potentiate the effects of endogenous catecholamines through different mechanisms without directly binding to adrenoceptors.
One mechanism involves depleting stored catecholamines by displacing them from synaptic vesicles. These agents, known as "displacers," are transported into vesicles at the expense of noradrenaline. Examples include amphetamine and tyramine, which lack a catechol moiety, resulting in prolonged action, improved oral...
3.0K
Stimulants01:29

Stimulants

1.3K
Stimulants are substances that enhance neural activity and elevate dopamine levels in the brain, leading to their highly addictive nature. These drugs include cocaine, amphetamines, MDMA, caffeine, and nicotine, each with distinct mechanisms of action and varied health implications.
Cocaine can be administered via snorting, injection, or smoking. It primarily functions by blocking the reuptake of dopamine, resulting in a euphoric high characterized by an intense sensation of happiness and...
1.3K
Cognitive Enhancers: Cholinesterase Inhibitors and NMDA Receptor Antagonists01:30

Cognitive Enhancers: Cholinesterase Inhibitors and NMDA Receptor Antagonists

856
Cognitive enhancers, also known as "smart drugs," are substances used to enhance memory, mental alertness, and concentration. These can be natural or synthetic and improve cognition in conditions like Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other neurodegenerative diseases. Some common examples include caffeine, amphetamines, methylphenidate, modafinil, arecoline, donepezil, vortioxetine, and piracetam. These enhancers work on the principle of synaptic plasticity and altered circuit function.
856
CNS Stimulants: Cocaine, Amphetamines and Cannabinoids01:24

CNS Stimulants: Cocaine, Amphetamines and Cannabinoids

1.2K
CNS stimulants, such as cocaine, amphetamines, and cannabinoids, have varying structures and mechanisms of action that lead to different therapeutic effects and side effects. Cocaine, with its molecular formula C17H21NO4, is a tropane alkaloid and a tertiary amino compound. It has two chemical forms: the hydrochloride salt and the "freebase." The former is in powder form, while the latter involves removing the hydrochloride salt to create a form that can be smoked. Cocaine exerts its...
1.2K
Altered States of Awareness01:06

Altered States of Awareness

1.5K
Altered states of consciousness represent significant deviations from one's normal mental state. These deviations can range from subtle changes in awareness to profound transformations in perception, thought processes, and sensory experiences. Altered states of consciousness can be triggered by various factors, including drug use, meditation, hypnosis, illness, or even intense fatigue.
The ingestion of substances like stimulants or hallucinogens leads to chemical alterations in the brain...
1.5K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Regional, functional and transcriptomic decoding of multidimensional brain structure alterations in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Nature communications·2026
Same author

A scoping review of inquiry in medicine and nursing using Dewey's perspective.

Advances in health sciences education : theory and practice·2026
Same author

The Regional Vulnerability Index (RVI) as a Neuroimaging-Based Biomarker for Autism: Associations with Likelihood, Cognition, and Longitudinal Social Outcomes.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same author

Altered neurodevelopmental trajectories of brain structure in Tourette syndrome and Chronic Tic Disorders.

medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences·2026
Same author

Qualitative EEG abnormalities in ASD reflect inhibition-dominated brain dynamics.

Scientific reports·2026
Same author

Altered frontal and occipital cortical microstructure in obsessive-compulsive disorder - a multisite mega-analysis.

Molecular psychiatry·2026

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 4, 2026

Touchscreen Sustained Attention Task SAT for Rats
09:31

Touchscreen Sustained Attention Task SAT for Rats

Published on: September 15, 2017

10.4K

Methylphenidate alters selective attention by amplifying salience.

Niels ter Huurne1,2, Sean James Fallon3,4, Martine van Schouwenburg5,6,7

  • 1Karakter Child and Adolescent Psychiatry University Centre, Reinier Postlaan 12, 6526 GC, Nijmegen, Netherlands. nielsterhuurne@gmail.com.

Psychopharmacology
|September 10, 2015
PubMed
Summary

Methylphenidate enhances attention to target stimuli but also increases susceptibility to distractors in healthy individuals. This cognitive drug amplifies the salience of task-relevant information, impacting selective attention.

Keywords:
ADHDAttentionCognitive enhancerDistractorDopamineMethylphenidateResistanceSalienceSmart drugSuppression

More Related Videos

Event Related Potentials ERPs and other EEG Based Methods for Extracting Biomarkers of Brain Dysfunction: Examples from Pediatric Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder ADHD
10:02

Event Related Potentials ERPs and other EEG Based Methods for Extracting Biomarkers of Brain Dysfunction: Examples from Pediatric Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder ADHD

Published on: March 12, 2020

17.0K
The 5-Choice Serial Reaction Time Task: A Task of Attention and Impulse Control for Rodents
09:43

The 5-Choice Serial Reaction Time Task: A Task of Attention and Impulse Control for Rodents

Published on: August 10, 2014

47.3K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Apr 4, 2026

Touchscreen Sustained Attention Task SAT for Rats
09:31

Touchscreen Sustained Attention Task SAT for Rats

Published on: September 15, 2017

10.4K
Event Related Potentials ERPs and other EEG Based Methods for Extracting Biomarkers of Brain Dysfunction: Examples from Pediatric Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder ADHD
10:02

Event Related Potentials ERPs and other EEG Based Methods for Extracting Biomarkers of Brain Dysfunction: Examples from Pediatric Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder ADHD

Published on: March 12, 2020

17.0K
The 5-Choice Serial Reaction Time Task: A Task of Attention and Impulse Control for Rodents
09:43

The 5-Choice Serial Reaction Time Task: A Task of Attention and Impulse Control for Rodents

Published on: August 10, 2014

47.3K

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Neuroscience
  • Psychopharmacology

Background:

  • Methylphenidate is a common ADHD treatment also used by healthy individuals as a cognitive enhancer.
  • Selective attention involves ignoring irrelevant environmental stimuli (distractors).
  • The impact of methylphenidate on resisting distractor capture is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how methylphenidate influences distractor suppression in healthy adults.
  • To determine if methylphenidate affects the ability to ignore irrelevant information during attention tasks.

Main Methods:

  • A within-subject, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover design was employed.
  • Twenty healthy subjects participated in a visuospatial attention task.
  • Targets were faces, flanked by either strong (faces) or weak (scrambled faces) distractors.

Main Results:

  • Methylphenidate improved accuracy in identifying target faces.
  • However, methylphenidate increased reaction times when distractors were faces compared to scrambled faces.
  • This suggests enhanced attentional capture by distractors with task-relevant features.

Conclusions:

  • Methylphenidate amplifies the salience of task-relevant information.
  • This leads to improved processing of targets but also increased attentional capture by relevant distractors.
  • The drug affects stimulus category salience, impacting selective attention mechanisms.