the involvement of supraspinal alpha-adrenergic receptors in tonic pain was assessed in formalin-induced pain in rats. the alpha2 adrenoceptor agonist clonidine, along with yohimbine and prazosin, α2 and α1 receptor antagonists, were introduced intracerebroventrically (icv) and/or systemically in different doses. the data show that 1) clonidine exerts an alpha adrenergic analgesic effect, in ad...

beta-Adrenergic receptors play a critical role in signal transduction in the cardiovascular system. Regulation of beta-adrenergic receptor expression depends on multiple factors, including rates of synthesis and degradation of receptor protein and trafficking of receptors between the cell surface and putative intracellular compartments. To characterize the subcellular distribution of beta-adren...

The adrenergic system provides the primary control for cardiac, vascular, pulmonal, and metabolic functions. Seven of the nine adrenergic receptor subtypes display mutations that affect their function. Results from transgenic mouse models and from association studies in human populations allow to link protein dysfunctions to cardiovascular diseases or to risk for disease development. The diseas...

The cannabinoid system is known to interact with a variety of neuromodulators in the central nervous system and impacts diverse behaviors. Previous studies have demonstrated that limbic norepinephrine is a critical determinant in the behavioral expression of cannabinoid-induced aversion. The present study was carried out to define the adrenergic receptor subtype involved in mediating cannabinoi...

A role for norepinephrine in learning and memory has been elusive and controversial. A longstanding hypothesis states that the adrenergic nervous system mediates enhanced memory consolidation of emotional events. We tested this hypothesis in several learning tasks using mutant mice conditionally lacking norepinephrine and epinephrine, as well as control mice and rats treated with adrenergic rec...

Conditions have been developed for desensitizing the beta-adrenergic receptor-coupled adenylate cyclase of turkey erythrocytes in a cell-free system. Desensitization is observed when cell lysates are incubated with isoproterenol or cAMP analogs for 30 min at 37 degrees C. Maximally effective concentrations of isoproterenol produce a 41.0 +/- 1.55% loss of iosproterenol-stimulated and a 15.0 +/-...

Recent developments in the characterization of the adrenergic receptors have led to the identification and purification of the binding subunits of the various catecholamine receptors. beta-Adrenergic receptors have been identified in a wide variety of tissues by photoaffinity labeling with the antagonist [125I]p-azidobenzylcrazolol and have been purified to apparent homogeneity from several of ...

Changes in the function of the adrenergic neurons of the heart may be important indicators of the adaptations of an animal to physiologic stress and disease. Rates of loss of norepinephrine (NE) from the heart were considered to be proportional to NE secretion and to adrenergic function. In rat hearts, yohimbine induced almost identical increases in rates of loss of 3H-NE and of 125I-metaiodobe...

Current learning theories are based on the idea that learning is driven by the difference between expectations and experience (the delta rule). In extinction, one learns that certain expectations no longer apply. Here, we test the potential validity of the delta rule by manipulating memory retrieval (and thus expectations) during extinction learning. Adrenergic signaling is critical for the tim...