Noradrenergic pathology in psychiatric disorders: postmortem studies.
In this paper, we review research utilizing postmortem brain tissue in order to investigate the potential neuropathology of the noradrenergic system in psychiatric disorders. The postmortem tissue approach to the study of the noradrenergic system has been used primarily in investigations of the biology of suicide and depression. Findings from postmortem studies provide data generally consistent with the hypothesis that a norepinephrine deficiency exists in depression, and possibly in the victims of suicide. However, postmortem studies do not presently provide irrefutable evidence of noradrenergic neuropathology. Technical shortcomings, issues of reproducibility, and the strengths of postmortem research are reviewed. More rigorously performed postmortem research is needed to aid researchers in pinpointing specific neuropathologies associated with psychiatric disease.
Ordway
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Division of Neurobiology and Behavior Research, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA. gordway@psychiatry.umsmed.edu
Klimek
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