Neuroscience/Pharmacology of antimigraine drugs

Objectives

When presented with a list of medications, students will be able to classify them as to whether they are used to treat migraine headache acutely or prophylactically AND classify them according to their mechanism of action
When asked, students will be able to indicate the type of receptors to which dihydroergotamine and sumatriptan bind
When asked, students will be able to indicate the location of serotonin receptors, both inside and outside the brain, and the putative anti-migraine action of triptans at each of the receptor types
When asked, students will be able to compare and contrast the receptor binding characteristics of ergotamine, dihydroergotamine, sumatriptan and common migraine preventers.