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Updated: Nov 12, 2025

Disrupting Reconsolidation of Fear Memory in Humans by a Noradrenergic β-Blocker
Published on: December 18, 2014
The role of noradrenaline in cognition and cognitive disorders
Negin Holland1, Trevor W Robbins2,3, James B Rowe1,3,4
1Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0SZ, UK.
Abstract:
Many aspects of cognition and behaviour are regulated by noradrenergic projections to the forebrain originating from the locus coeruleus, acting through alpha and beta adrenoreceptors. Loss of these projections is common in neurodegenerative diseases and contributes to their cognitive and behavioural deficits. We review the evidence for a noradrenergic modulation of cognition in its contribution to Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and other cognitive disorders. We discuss the advances in human imaging and computational methods that quantify the locus coeruleus and its function in humans, and highlight the potential for new noradrenergic treatment strategies.
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