PACAP Neurotransmitter Signal Travels from Spinal Cord to Amygdala (IMAGE)

University of Vermont

PACAP Neurotransmitter Signal Travels from Spinal Cord to Amygdala

Caption

In the spinal cord, chronic pain can dramatically increase PACAP neurotransmitter levels (top panel, green fluorescent signal with arrows) on the affected side compared to the normal control side. The neurotransmitter signal travels in a neurocircuit that reaches the amygdala in the brain which controls stress-related behaviors (bottom panel, green area in cartoon denotes amygdala region).

Credit

Courtesy of Victor May, Ph.D., University of Vermont College of Medicine

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