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. 2021 Jun 11;12:665682. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.665682

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Copyright © 2021 Postolache, Wadhawan, Rujescu, Hoisington, Dagdag, Baca-Garcia, Lowry, Okusaga and Brenner.

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

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Graphic illustration of norepinephrine (NE) synthesis in the brain of a rodent. Synthesis of NE occurs from tyrosine through the following steps: (a) tyrosine hydroxylase converts tyrosine to levodopa or l-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA); (b) L-type amino acid decarboxylase converts L-DOPA to dopamine; (c) vesicular monoamine transporter (VMAT) transports dopamine into the presynaptic vesicles; and (d) dopamine-β-hydroxylase (DBH) converts dopamine into NE. NE binding to β- and α- adrenergic receptors takes place after its release from the presynaptic vesicles into the synapse, from where norepinephrine transporter (NET) mediates its reuptake. Locus coeruleus (LC) houses the majority of brainstem noradrenergic neurons and it projects to several regions in the brain, including the amygdala, hippocampus and medial prefrontal cortex (MPC) [Reprinted from (363); Copyright (2020); with permission from Elsevier; License # 4986231317003].