Abstract
Publisher Summary This chapter discusses procedures that are used for monitoring extracellular norepinephrine (NE) in brain using in vivo microdialysis and high pressure liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection (HPLC-EC). The catecholamines dopamine (DA) and NE are the most studied of all neurotransmitter substances. Excessive activation of central noradrenergic neurons may contribute to the etiology of clinical anxiety disorders. Although an increased activity of central NE neurons appears to be involved in the mediation of normal central nervous system (CNS) stress reactions, there may be a level of activation that is optimal during such conditions. Benzodiazepines are used extensively in the treatment of anxiety disorders, and although their anxiolytic properties are well documented, the exact mechanism responsible for these effects remains to be determined. If anxiety disorders are indeed mediated by a hyperactivity of noradrenergic neurons, it is interesting to speculate that the anxiolytic properties of the benzodiazepines may be related to their ability to attenuate this hyperactivity.
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