Psychophysiological and biochemical changes in patients with panic attacks in a defined situational arousal

Threat of shock increases distractor susceptibility during the short-term maintenance of visual information

Elevated arousal in anxiety is thought to affect attention control. To test this, we designed a visual short-term memory (VSTM) task to examine distractor suppression during periods of threat and no-threat. We hypothesized that threat would impair performance when subjects had to filter out large numbers of distractors. The VSTM task required subjects to attend to one array of squares while ignoring a separate array. The number of target and distractor squares varied systematically, with high (four squares) and low (two squares) target and distractor conditions. This study comprised two separate experiments. Experiment 1 used startle responses and white noise as to directly measure threat-induced anxiety. Experiment 2 used BOLD to measure brain responses. For Experiment 1, subjects showed significantly larger startle responses during threat compared to safe period, supporting the validity of the threat manipulation. For Experiment 2, we found that accuracy was affected by threat, such that the distractor load negatively impacted accuracy only in the threat condition. We also found threat-related differences in parietal cortex activity. Overall, these findings suggest that threat affects distractor susceptibility, impairing filtering of distracting information. This effect is possibly mediated by hyperarousal of parietal cortex during threat.

Intermittent theta-burst stimulation to the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex may increase potentiated startle in healthy individuals

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) treatment protocols targeting the right dlPFC have been effective in reducing anxiety symptoms comorbid with depression. However, the mechanism behind these effects is unclear. Further, it is unclear whether these results generalize to non-depressed individuals. We conducted a series of studies aimed at understanding the link between anxiety potentiated startle and the right dlPFC, following a previous study suggesting that continuous theta burst stimulation (cTBS) to the right dlPFC can make people more anxious. Based on these results we hypothesized that intermittent TBS (iTBS), which is thought to have opposing effects on plasticity, may reduce anxiety when targeted at the same right dlPFC region. In this double-blinded, cross-over design, 28 healthy subjects underwent 12 study visits over a 4-week period. During each of their 2 stimulation weeks, they received four 600 pulse iTBS sessions (2/day), with a post-stimulation testing session occurring 24 h following the final iTBS session. One week they received active stimulation, one week they received sham. Stimulation weeks were separated by a 1-week washout period and the order of active/sham delivery was counterbalanced across subjects. During the testing session, we induced anxiety using the threat of unpredictable shock and measured anxiety potentiated startle. Contrary to our initial hypothesis, subjects showed increased startle reactivity following active compared to sham stimulation. These results replicate work from our two previous trials suggesting that TMS to the right dlPFC increases anxiety potentiated startle, independent of both the pattern of stimulation and the timing of the post stimulation measure. Although these results confirm a mechanistic link between right dlPFC excitability and startle, capitalizing upon this link for the benefit of patients will require future exploration.

Threat of shock increases distractor susceptibility during the short-term maintenance of visual information

BACKGROUND

Work on anxiety related attention control deficits suggests that elevated arousal impacts the ability to filter out distractors. To test this, we designed a task to look at distractor suppression during periods of threat. We administered trials of a visual short-term memory (VSTM) task, during periods of unpredictable threat, and hypothesized that threat would impair performance during trials where subjects were required to filter out large numbers of distractors.

METHOD

Experiment 1 involved fifteen healthy participants who completed one study visit. They performed four runs of a VSTM task comprising 32 trials each. Participants were presented with an arrow indicating left or right, followed by an array of squares. They were instructed to remember the target side and disregard the distractors on the off-target side. A subsequent target square was shown, and participants indicated whether it matched one of the previously presented target squares. The trial conditions included 50% matches and 50% mismatches, with an equal distribution of left and right targets. The number of target and distractor squares varied systematically, with high (4 squares) and low (2 squares) target and distractor conditions. Trials alternated between periods of safety and threat, with startle responses recorded using electromyography (EMG) following white noise presentations. Experiment 2 involved twenty-seven healthy participants who completed the same VSTM task inside an MRI scanner during a single study visit. The procedure mirrored that of Experiment 1, except for the absence of white noise presentations.

RESULTS

For Experiment 1, subjects showed significantly larger startle responses during threat compared to safe period, supporting the validity of the threat manipulation. However, results suggested that the white noise probes interfered with performance. For Experiment 2, we found that both accuracy was affected by threat, such that distractor load negatively impacted accuracy only in the threat condition.

CONCLUSION

Overall, these findings suggest that threat affects distractor susceptibility during the short-term maintenance of visual information. The presence of threat makes it more difficult to filter out distracting information. We believe that this is related to hyperarousal of parietal cortex, which has been observed during unpredictable threat.

Methodological considerations in ambulatory skin conductance monitoring

Little is known how much skin conductance (SC) recordings from the fingers are affected by factors such as electrode site deterioration, ambient temperature (TMP), or physical activity (ACT), or by age, sex, race, or body mass index. We recorded SC, TMP, and ACT in 48 healthy control subjects for a 24-hour period, and calculated SC level (SCL), its standard deviation, the coefficient of SC variation, and frequency and amplitude of non-specific SC fluctuations. One method of assessing electrode site deterioration showed an average decline of 20%, while a second method found no significant change. All SC measures were higher during waking than sleep. Other factors influenced different measures in different ways. Thus, 24-hour SC recording outside the laboratory is feasible, but some measures need to be corrected for the influence of confounding variables.

Twenty-four hour skin conductance in panic disorder

Skin conductance, physical activity, ambient temperature and mood were recorded for 24 h in 22 panic disorder (PD) patients and 29 healthy controls. During the day, subjects performed standardized relaxation tests (ARTs). We hypothesized that tonically elevated anticipatory anxiety in PD during waking and sleeping would appear as elevated skin conductance level (SCL) and greater skin conductance (SC) variability. Mean SCL was higher during both usual waking activities and sleeping in PD, but not during the ARTs. Group SC variability differences did not reach significance, perhaps because of variance unrelated to anxiety. Analyses indicated that in the PD group, antidepressant medication reduced mean SCL whereas state anxiety had the opposite effect during the day. Depressive symptoms reported during the day were related to elevated mean SCL on the night of the recording. The rate and extent of SCL deactivation over the night was equal in the two groups. However, PD patients had more frequent interruptions of deactivation that could have arisen from conditioned arousal in response to threat cues during sleep.

Phasic vs sustained fear in rats and humans: role of the extended amygdala in fear vs anxiety

Data will be reviewed using the acoustic startle reflex in rats and humans based on our attempts to operationally define fear vs anxiety. Although the symptoms of fear and anxiety are very similar, they also differ. Fear is a generally adaptive state of apprehension that begins rapidly and dissipates quickly once the threat is removed (phasic fear). Anxiety is elicited by less specific and less predictable threats, or by those that are physically or psychologically more distant. Thus, anxiety is a more long-lasting state of apprehension (sustained fear). Rodent studies suggest that phasic fear is mediated by the amygdala, which sends outputs to the hypothalamus and brainstem to produce symptoms of fear. Sustained fear is also mediated by the amygdala, which releases corticotropin-releasing factor, a stress hormone that acts on receptors in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST), a part of the so-called 'extended amygdala.' The amygdala and BNST send outputs to the same hypothalamic and brainstem targets to produce phasic and sustained fear, respectively. In rats, sustained fear is more sensitive to anxiolytic drugs. In humans, symptoms of clinical anxiety are better detected in sustained rather than phasic fear paradigms.

A complementary method for detecting qi vacuity

BACKGROUND

Qi vacuity (QV) is defined by traditional Chinese medicine as a loss of energy in the human body. An objective method for detecting QV was not available until recently, however. The automatic reflective diagnosis system (ARDK) is a device that detects human bioenergy through measuring skin conductance at 24 special acupoints on the wrists and ankles.

METHODS

This study used the ARDK to measure skin conductance on 193 patients with QV and 89 sex- and age-matched healthy controls to investigate whether the device is useful in detecting QV. Patients diagnosed with QV have three or more of five symptoms or signs; symptom severity is measured on 5 levels and scored from 0 to 4 points. We compared the difference in the mean ARDK values between patients with QV and healthy controls, and further used linear regression analysis to investigate the correlation between the mean ARDK values and QV scores in patients diagnosed with QV.

RESULTS

The mean ARDK values in patients with QV (30.2 +/- 16.8 microA) are significantly lower than those of healthy controls (37.7 +/- 10.8 microA; P < 0.001). A negative correlation was found between the mean ARDK values and QV scores (r coefficient = -0.61; P < 0.001). After adjusting for age, the decreased mean ARDK values in patients with QV showed a significant correlation with the QV scores.

CONCLUSION

These results suggest that the mean ARDK values reflect the severity of QV in patients diagnosed with the disorder. They also suggest that the bioenergy level of the human body can be measured by skin conductance. ARDK is a safe and effective complementary method for detecting and diagnosing QV.

Models and mechanisms of anxiety: evidence from startle studies

RATIONALE

Preclinical data indicates that threat stimuli elicit two classes of defensive behaviors, those that are associated with imminent danger and are characterized by flight or fight (fear), and those that are associated with temporally uncertain danger and are characterized by sustained apprehension and hypervigilance (anxiety).

OBJECTIVE

The objectives of the study are to (1) review evidence for a distinction between fear and anxiety in animal and human experimental models using the startle reflex as an operational measure of aversive states, (2) describe experimental models of anxiety, as opposed to fear, in humans, (3) examine the relevance of these models to clinical anxiety.

RESULTS

The distinction between phasic fear to imminent threat and sustained anxiety to temporally uncertain danger is suggested by psychopharmacological and behavioral evidence from ethological studies and can be traced back to distinct neuroanatomical systems, the amygdala and the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis. Experimental models of anxiety, not fear, are relevant to non-phobic anxiety disorders.

CONCLUSIONS

Progress in our understanding of normal and abnormal anxiety is critically dependent on our ability to model sustained aversive states to temporally uncertain threat.

Norepinephrine-mediated regulation of 5HT1 receptor functioning in human platelets

Adaptive changes in serotonergic 5HT1 receptor signalling are believed to underlie the therapeutic effectiveness of antidepressant drugs. Since cells are continuously exposed to neurotransmitters/neuromodulators, spatially and temporally integrated, the responsiveness of a receptor system is dependent upon the physio-pathological state of the cell and the interaction between different neurotransmitters. In the present work, we investigated heterologous regulation of 5HT1 receptors induced by norepinephrine (NE) in human platelets. NE platelet treatment induced a time and concentration dependent 5HT1 receptor desensitisation mediated by both alpha and beta receptors through activation of intracellular protein kinases. In particular NE, through PKC activation, regulated 5HT1 receptor phosphorylation on threonine residues, causing in turn serotonin receptor-G protein uncoupling and functional responsiveness drop. These results suggest that high NE levels (released i.e. during stress disorders) may play an important role in regulating the 5HT1 responsiveness and in controlling effectiveness of drugs acting on these neurotransmitter systems.

Subjective and neurovegetative changes in healthy volunteers and panic patients performing simulated public speaking

Drug-free symptomatic panic patients, drug-treated nonsymptomatic patients and healthy controls were submitted to simulated public speaking. Subjective anxiety, cognitive impairment and discomfort measured by the visual analog mood scale as well as skin conductance level were higher in symptomatic patients than in controls at the beginning of the experimental session, nonsymptomatic patients lying in between. Subjective sedation, spontaneous fluctuations of skin conductance, heart rate and blood pressure were similar in the three groups. Preparation and performance of speech decreased sedation while increasing anxiety, cognitive impairment, level and fluctuations of skin conductance, heart rate and blood pressure. Anxiety, cognitive impairment and conductance level were less increased in symptomatic patients than in controls. Electrodermal activity, but not cardiovascular measures of sympathetic arousal correlated with anticipatory anxiety. Chronic treatment with serotonin uptake inhibitors attenuated the differences between panic patients and controls, supporting the participation of serotonin in panic disorder.

Anxiety and salivary cortisol in symptomatic and nonsymptomatic panic patients and healthy volunteers performing simulated public speaking

Anxiety and salivary cortisol were measured in subjects performing simulated public speaking (SPS), a procedure that has been neurobiologically related to panic disorder. The subjects were divided into three groups: 18 symptomatic panic patients, 16 nonsymptomatic, drug-treated panic patients, and 17 healthy controls. In the experimental session, subjective anxiety (Visual Analogue Mood Scale) and the total score of the Bodily Symptom Scale (BSS) were higher in symptomatic patients than in controls, with nonsymptomatic patients in between. Measures of cortisol taken at home showed that the level was higher at 9:00 h than at 23:00 h in every group, indicating a normal circadian regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in panic patients. Also in every group, the level of cortisol was high at the beginning of the experimental session and decreased after 70 min. This fall parallels the decrease in anxiety and BSS ratings, and appears to reflect habituation of initial, anticipatory anxiety. Preparation and performance of speech raised anxiety and BSS scores to the initial levels, but failed to increase cortisol measured over 60 min, starting at the end of the speech. Therefore, SPS does not seem to activate the HPA axis, as reported in panic attacks.

Serotonin-mediated phosphorylation of extracellular regulated kinases in platelets of patients with panic disorder versus controls

Phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK 1/2) represents a converging intracellular signalling pathway which is involved in the modulation of gene transcription and may contribute to the feed-back regulation of neurotransmitter receptor functioning. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the serotonin-mediated phosphorylation of ERK 1/2 in platelets from patients (n = 17) with panic disorder, with respect to healthy volunteers (n = 17). Patients presented a severe symptomatology as assessed by the self-report rating scales for panic-agoraphobic (PAS-SR) and mood (MOOD-SR) spectrum, and by Clinical Global Impression Severity Scale (CGI-S). In platelets from healthy volunteers, serotonin induced a rapid increase of ERK 1/2 phosphorylation with a transient monophasic kinetic. The dose-response curves showed this effect was concentration dependent with an average of the EC(50) value of 22.8 +/- 2.4 microM. Platelet pre-incubation with 5HT(1A) and 5HT(2A) antagonists, pindobind and ritanserin, significantly inhibited serotonin-mediated kinase activation with an EC(50) of 3.2 +/- 0.2 and 1.99 +/- 0.08 nM, respectively, suggesting an involvement of these specific receptor subtypes in serotonin-mediated response. Furthermore, the 5HT(1A) and 5HT(2A) agonists, 8-hydroxy-N,N-dipropyl-aminotetralin (8OH-DPAT) and 1-(2,5-dimethoxy)-4-iodophenyl-2-aminopropane (DOI), were able to modulate ERK 1/2 phosphorylation in a concentration-dependent manner with an EC(50) value of 3.1 +/- 0.2 and 76 +/- 4.5 nM, respectively. ERK 1/2 phosphorylation was not observed after serotonin treatment of platelets from drug-free panic disorder patients, suggesting an alteration in intracellular phosphorylative pathways. Since ERK 1/2 responsiveness to other stimulus, such as collagen and thrombin, was comparable in platelets from healthy volunteers and patients, our results suggested that a specific alteration of serotonergic system occurred in panic disorder. Further studies to investigate 5HT(1A) and 5HT(2A) receptor expression and threonine phosphorylation levels showed that, nevertheless no significant differences in the receptor expression levels were detected, an increase of both 5HT receptor phosphorylation, on threonine residues, occurred in platelet from panic patients with respect to controls, suggesting that a reduction of serotonin receptor functioning was involved in the loss of serotonin responsiveness in panic.

Norepinephrine transporter gene (NET) variants in patients with panic disorder

Several lines of evidence suggest that catecholamines, especially norepinephrine, are implicated in the etiology and/or symptomatology of panic disorder (PD). At the cellular level, functional noradrenergic neurotransmission depends on synaptic reuptake of norepinephrine as mediated by the norepinephrine transporter (NET). A pharmacological target of agents with an established anti-panic efficacy, e.g. tricyclic antidepressants, the NET is of particular interest in PD. We investigated the NET gene for the presence of 6 naturally occurring exonic sequence variants, 5 of which give rise to amino acid substitutions (Val69Ile, Thr99Ile, Val245Ile, Val449Ile and Gly478Ser) in a population of 87 patients with PD and 89 healthy controls. Except for a silent substitution (G1287A), overall frequencies of variant alleles were low (< or =0.016). None of the variants under study was found to be associated with PD regardless of an additional diagnosis of agoraphobia.

Do panic patients process unconditioned fear vs. conditioned anxiety differently than normal subjects?

Panic patients were evaluated with two models of experimental anxiety that are believed to generate distinct emotional states: (1) a stimulated public speaking test (SPS), a presumed indicator of unconditioned fear, and (2) conditioning of skin conductance responses (CSCR) to a tone associated with an aversive white noise, an index of conditioned anxiety. Subjective states were evaluated through the visual analogue mood scale (VAMS) and a bodily symptoms scale (BSS). In the SPS test, panic patients showed higher baseline levels of VAMS-measured anxiety than controls. Unlike controls, panic patients failed to show increased anxiety before and during speech. Although baseline levels of arousal were similar in both groups, VAMS mental sedation decreased in controls, but not in panic patients during the SPS. Panic patients showed more discontent than controls throughout the whole experimental session. They also scored higher than controls on several items of the BSS. In the CSCR test, panic patients showed more spontaneous fluctuations of skin conductance than controls. Nevertheless, conditioning of skin conductance responses to the tone was similar in both groups. Therefore, panic patients seemed to process unconditioned fear abnormally.

Polymorphism in the promoter region of the alpha(2A)-adrenergic receptor gene and panic disorders

alpha(2)-Adrenergic receptors have been thought to play a crucial role in the etiology or treatment of panic disorders. Polymorphism(s) in the promoter region of the alpha(2) receptor may affect gene expression and be associated with panic disorders. We studied the polymorphism of the alpha(2A) receptor gene at position -1291 reported by Lario et al. (Lario, S., Calls, J., Cases, A., Oriola, J., Torras, A., Rivera, F., 1997. Short repeat on DNA marker at candidate locus. MspI identifies a biallelic polymorphism in the promoter region of the alpha(2A)-adrenergic receptor gene. Clinical Genetics 51, 129-130.) in 114 healthy control subjects and 55 patients with panic disorders. There was no statistically significant difference between controls and patients in either genotype or allele frequency. Our results suggest there is no association between this polymorphism in the promoter region of the alpha(2A) receptor gene and panic disorders.

Perceptual reactance, drug preference, and electrodermal activity in treatment-seeking substance abusers

Perceptual reactance (PR) was explored as a contributing variable to drug abuse. PR is defined as the general tendency of an individual's central nervous system to perceptually modulate incoming sensory stimuli. Using an adaptive model of drug use, it was hypothesized that drug preference in substance abusers would vary with PR. Specifically, perceptual reducers, who subjectively dampen afferent sensation, would prefer experience-expanding drugs (i.e., cocaine and amphetamines) to heighten perception. Conversely, perceptual augmenters would prefer sensory-restricting drugs (i.e., opioids and sedative-hypnotics) that attenuate or modulate environmental stimuli. Utilizing subjective (Reducing-Augmenting Scale) and objective (electrodermal responses) measures of PR, the relationship was tested in a sample of treatment-seeking substance abusers (n = 122). The sample was stratified on whether or not they were abstinent. Interestingly, a higher than anticipated rate of electrodermal non-responsivity was found across the sample and the implications of this finding are discussed. The study hypothesis was only supported in the electrodermally-responsive group.

CCK4-induced panic in healthy subjects II: neurochemical correlates

Cholecystokinin tetrapeptide (CCK4) induces symptoms similar to those of panic attack. The present study investigated the effects of CCK4 administration on catecholaminergic system. In this double blind, randomised, crossover experiment, 16 healthy subjects received injections of either 25 microg of CCK4 or placebo on two separate occasions. Platelet and plasma catecholamine concentrations were assessed before the administration and compared to post-injection values. The results clearly show that both plasma and platelet concentrations of catecholamines are significantly affected by CCK4. Plasma norepinephrine (NE) and epinephrine (EPI) raised significantly above baseline in the immediate post-CCK4 period, while in plasma dopamine (DA), the significant increases were delayed. In the platelets, significant post-CCK4 increases of NE and EPI concentrations were observed with a delay of several minutes. In summary, we have demonstrated that, in healthy subjects, CCK4 increases peripheral concentrations of catecholamines in both plasma and platelets, with the most consistent changes occurring in platelet NE and plasma EPI concentrations.

The correlation between skin electrical conductance and the score of qi vacuity

In traditional Chinese medicine, the syndrome of qi vacuity means that the patient's body has a low level of energy to react to stress. Recently, we used a score, the QV score, by scaling the severity of symptoms and signs of qi vacuity in patients with tiredness. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between QV score and skin electrical conductance in patients with tiredness. One hundred and forty-three healthy controls and 103 patients with tiredness were involved. Each subject received a weak electrical stimulation with constant voltage (1.75 volt), and conductance was measured between two different limbs. The mean value of skin conductance among four limbs was calculated and expressed by a special unit, namely Chin. The correlation between the skin conductance and QV score was analyzed by a linear regression analysis. The results showed that skin electrical conductance of healthy controls was negatively correlated with age (r-coefficient = -0.51, P = 0.000). The skin conductance of patients with tiredness was significantly lower than that of healthy controls with matching age (P = 0.000 by Student's t-test). Moreover, there was a positive correlation between the decrease of skin conductance and the QV score in patients with tiredness (r-coefficient = +0.68, P = 0.000). These results suggest that a decrease in skin electrical conductance may be closely related to the severity of qi vacuity. The skin conductance test is a simple, reliable, and quantitative method for detection of syndrome of qi vacuity.

The relation between skin conductance level and plus-maze behavior in male mice

The present study examined the correlation between anxiety scores and skin conductance level in 29 male Swiss Albino mice. Skin conductance (SC) was recorded with the SC unit and IBM-AT computer. Anxiety scores of mice were obtained from the elevated plus-maze test. The main result of the present study indicates that SC levels (SCLs) are negatively correlated with plus-maze behavior scores (both entries and time spent on the open arms). Our results are consistent with the findings which suggests that the higher the anxiety level the higher the SCL. This study further demonstrates the utility of SCL as a measurement for identifying anxiety in mouse. The interrelation between SCLs and plus-maze scores and possible explanations of the results are discussed.

Physiological, biochemical and subjective parameters in anxiety patients with panic disorder during stress exposure as compared with healthy controls

Physiological (heart rate, blood pressure, electrodermal activity), biochemical (epinephrine, norepinephrine, cortisol) and subjective parameters (self-rating score) of 33 patients with panic disorder (diagnoses according to DSM-III-R) before, during and after stress exposure were compared with those of healthy controls. As stressors a video containing frightening scenes (FS), mental arithmetic (MA), a video documenting a patient suffering from a panic attack (PA) and an improvised speech (IS) were applied. We found significantly higher baseline levels of electrodermal activity (EDA) and norepinephrine (NE) secretion and a subsequent further increase during stress exposure in panic disorder patients as compared with normal controls. The most potent stressors during the trial proved to be mental arithmetics and improvised speech, which was evident in both groups. The situation panic attack video appeared to be a "panic disorder patient-specific" stressor; here we noticed the most pronounced reactions in the patient group. Panic disorder patients had significantly higher self-rating scores of the parameters panicky feelings, anxiety and nervousness at the beginning and throughout the investigation. We conclude that panic disorder patients have a higher degree of activation compared with normal controls, which is evident regarding levels of electrodermal activity and norepinephrine secretion. Furthermore, the panic attack video appears to be a panic disorder patient-specific stressor.

Platelet alpha 2-adrenoreceptors, catecholamines, hemodynamic variables, and anxiety in panic patients and their asymptomatic relatives

The objectives of this study were to a) replicate our prior finding of a decreased number (Bmax) of platelet alpha 2-adrenoreceptors in panic disorder, b) determine if binding is also decreased in asymptomatic first-degree relatives of panic patients (known to be at increased risk for developing panic), and c) evaluate the effect of treatment on the presumptive decrease in binding (i.e., is the decrease a state or a trait marker for panic?). Panic patients had clonidine and yohimbine platelet-binding assays, symptom ratings, and measurement of lying and standing plasma epinephrine, norepinephrine, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and heart rate before treatment, after approximately 2 months of medication (fluoxetine, tricyclics, or alprazolam) and/or cognitive behavioral treatment, and after symptom remission while drug free; normal subjects had determinations of the same measures at approximately the same time intervals. Relatives of both groups had one determination only of all measures. Tritiated clonidine binding was decreased and lying heart rate was increased in patients before treatment. Magnitude of binding decrease was correlated with symptom severity and standing norepinephrine. No binding abnormality was seen in first-degree relatives of patients. Treatment increased clonidine binding in patients. Both patients and relatives of patients showed significantly increased standing plasma norepinephrine in comparison to controls. There is a state-related decrease in binding, associated with symptom severity and norepinephrine, in panic disorder. Abnormal reactivity of norepinephrine to standing might be a marker for increased likelihood of panic development in individuals at risk.