What is NORADRENALINE and what is it for

Our entire organism is evolutionarily designed to survive. Within our day to day we face different situations that require different responses from us. At times, we must use a large amount of resources and mobilize our body for action, and at other times, such a level of mobilization is not enough.

In order to activate and mobilize ourselves, in the face of the demands of our day to day, different compounds intervene in our body. One of them, perhaps the best known, is norepinephrine. If you are interested in knowing more about it, continue reading this Psychology-Online article in which we explain what is norepinephrine and what is it for.

Index

1. What is norepinephrine
2. Norepinephrine functions
3. Norepinephrine in drug treatment
4. Norepinephrine in sleep problems

When we talk about the definition of norepinephrine we may be referring to:

• Norepinephrine as hormone.
• Norepinephrine as neurotransmitter, belonging to the group of monoamines, together with
  serotonin Yet the dopamine, and, within this category, specifically catecholamines, together with dopamine.
• Norepinephrine as drug.

Whatever the way we refer to norepinephrine, the truth is that it performs various functions that have a common denominator: the activation of our body.

To perform any task, whether they are exceptional tasks or more everyday tasks, it is necessary to have a certain level of activation. What does norepinephrine do? Along with acetylcholine, serotonin, histamine, and orexin (Carlson, N.R., 2010)^[1] They are in charge of preparing us for maintain that necessary level of alertness to carry out our functions.

Norepinephrine too prepares our body for action. Together with adrenaline, they affect glucose metabolism, making the body have the necessary energy levels in certain situations. In addition, it also increases blood pressure and increases the blood supply to the muscles. Precisely this effect, maintained over time, can lead to health problems such as heart complications.

Norepinephrine in the stress response

Another function of norepinephrine is its participation in the physiological stress response. Before this, the sympathetic branch of the neurovegetative system is activated and the adrenal glands secrete adrenaline, norepinephrine and steroid hormones related to it. stress.

Norepinephrine, in addition to its function as stress hormone, is secreted in the brain and acts as a neurotransmitter. The stress-induced release of norepinephrine in the brain is controlled by a pathway from the central nucleus of the amygdala to the locus coeruleus, the nucleus of the brainstem that contains neurons that secrete norepinephrine (Van Bockstaele et al., 2001 seen in Carlson, N.R., 2010).

There may be problems related to the effect of norepinephrine. As we have seen previously, a maintenance of the stress response and, therefore, an increase in norepinephrine levels, can be detrimental to health.

In the same way, norepinephrine deficiencies can also lead to health problems such as, for example, depressive problems. Taking into consideration that there are multiple etiological explanations for depression, which here we are more interested in the monoaminergic theory of depression, of a biological nature, postulates that people with depressive disorders are deficient in norepinephrine, serotonin and dopamine.

Pharmacological treatment, in the event of a norepinephrine deficiency, will be aimed at enhance the effect of the neurotransmitter and / or to keep it longer. This function is performed by norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors.

Uses of norepinephrine as a medicine

What is norepinephrine for? Following the Vademecum (2018)^[2] norepinephrine, or norepinephrine, is a drug whose mechanism of action is based on the vasoconstrictor action of resistance and capacitance vessels and is a myocardial stimulant.

Taking as reference the therapeutic indications of Vademecum (2018), below, we will see the functions of norepinephrine as a drug indicated for:

• States of acute hypotension.
• Temporary adjuvant in the cardiac arrest treatment.

The dosage of the drug is subject to medical prescription. However, taking into account the therapeutic indications for this drug, these doses are usually higher at the beginning and decrease in the maintenance phases.

Taking into account what has been said so far about the effects of norepinephrine, it is logical to think that it has influence on wake-sleep cycles.

Indeed, it seems that the activity of the noradrenergic neurons of the locus coeruleus participate in these processes. The firing frequency of these neurons decreases during slow wave sleep and is almost nil during slow wave sleep. REM sleep. In contrast, this discharge frequency is high during wakefulness. (Aston-Jones and Bloom, 1981; seen in Carlson, N.R., 2010). In this article, we tell you how to sleep fast and deep.

This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to What is norepinephrine and what is it for?, we recommend that you enter our category of Neuropsychology.

1. Carlson, N.R. (2010) In Fundamentals of Behavioral Physiology. Madrid: Pearson Educación S.A.
2. Vademecum (2018) Noradrenaline B. Braun 1mg / ml Concent. Parasol. For perfus. Recovered from https://www.vademecum.es/medicamento-noradrenalina+b.+braun+1+mg%2Fml+concent.+para+sol.+para+perfus._21847

• University of Navarra Clinic (2020). Medical dictionary. Recovered from https://www.cun.es/diccionario-medico