Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 8, 2026

Disrupting Reconsolidation of Fear Memory in Humans by a Noradrenergic β-Blocker
Published on: December 18, 2014
Noradrenergic interactions via autonomic nervous system: a promising target for extinction-based exposure therapy?
Gürsel Calişkan1, Anne Albrecht
1Institute for Neurophysiology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin-Berlin, Berlin, Germany; and.
Abstract:
Fearful associations can be replaced by neutral associations through repetitive exposure of an individual to the fearful situation without the aversive component. Recently, Peña and colleagues (Peña DF, Engineer ND, McIntyre CK. Biol Psychiatry 73: 1071-1077, 2013) demonstrated that pairing activation of noradrenergic (NA) pathways through vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) with extinction learning accelerates consolidation of extinction memories in rats. Their findings stress the importance of activating the NA system through VNS in treatment of anxiety disorders such as PTSD or phobia.
Related Concept Videos
Behavior Therapy
Exposure therapy is a cornerstone of behavioral treatment for anxiety disorders. It involves systematic exposure to feared stimuli, either in real...
Drugs Affecting Neurotransmitter Release or Uptake
Desensitization and Tachyphylaxis
Several...
Adrenergic Agonists: Indirect-Acting Agents
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 bioavailability, and...
Sympathetic Signaling
Sympathetic preganglionic fibers release the neurotransmitter acetylcholine (ACh) onto the ganglionic neurons in the...
Disorders of the Autonomic Nervous System
Raynaud's disease, also known as Raynaud's phenomenon, is a...

