Primer on the Autonomic Nervous System, Fourth Edition provides a concise and accessible overview of autonomic neuroscience for students, scientists, and clinicians. The book's 142 chapters draw on the expertise of more than 215 basic scientists and clinicians who discuss key information on how the autonomic nervous system controls the body, particularly in response to stress. This new edition also focuses on the translational crossover between basic and clinical research. In addition to comprehensively covering all aspects of autonomic physiology and pathology, topics such as psychopharmacology decoding and modulating nerve function are also explored.


I. Introduction
1. Evolution of the Cardiovascular Autonomic Nervous System in Vertebrates
2. Central Autonomic Control
3. Peripheral Autonomic Nervous System

II. Biochemical and Pharmacological Mechanisms
4. Noradrenergic Neurotransmission
5. Antidepressant-Sensitive Norepinephrine Transporters: Structure and Regulation
6. a1-Adrenergic Receptors
7. Alpha2-Adrenergic Receptors
8. b-Adrenergic Receptors
9. Dopaminergic Neurotransmission
10. Dopamine Receptors
11. Cholinergic Neurotransmission
12. Acetylcholine and Muscarinic Receptors
13. Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors in the Autonomic Nervous System
14. Neuropeptide Y and the autonomic nervous system
15. Serotonin Receptors
16. Purinergic Neurotransmission and Nucleotide Receptors
17. Nitric Oxide and The Autonomic Nervous System
18. Glutamatergic Neurotransmission
19. Pharmacology: GABAergic Neurotransmission
20. Renin-Angiotensin
21. Aldosterone, the Mineralocorticoid Receptor and Sympathetic Nervous System
22. Vasopressin in central autonomic regulation
23. Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide and Adrenomedullin
24. Leptin Signaling and Energy Homeostasis
25. The Endothelin System
26. Pharmacology of the neurotransmission of the baro- and chemoreflex in the Nucleus Tractus Solitarius

III. Autonomic Physiology
27. Rhythms in Sympathetic Nerve Activity
28. Circadian Rhythms and Autonomic Function
29. Cardiorespiratory interactions in health and disease
30. Baroreceptor reflexes
31. Cardiac and Other Visceral Afferents
32. Sympathetic control of the Heart
33. Cardiac Vagal Ganglia
34. Physiology of Upright Posture
35. Cerebral Circulation
36. Autonomic Control of the Pupil
37. Gastrointestinal Function
38. Extrinsic Control of Gastrointestinal Function
39. The Splanchnic Circulation
40. Autonomic Control of the Kidney
41. Autonomic Control of the Lower Urinary Tract
42. Bladder Function in Health and Disease
43. Physiology and Pathophysiology of Female Sexual Function
44. Sweating
45. Autonomic Innervation of the Skeleton
46. Regulation of Metabolism by the Autonomic Nervous System
47. Sex Differences in Autonomic Function
48. Autonomic Control During Pregnancy
49. Ageing and the autonomic nervous system
50. Autonomic Function in Sleep and Sleep Deprivation
51. Telemetric autonomic monitoring

IV. Autonomic Response to Environmental Challenges
52. Exercise
53. Psychological Stress and Autonomic Nervous System
54. Hypoglycemia
55. Autonomic Response to Hypovolemic Shock
56. Physiology of thermoregulation: central and peripheral mechanisms
57. Effects of High Altitude
58. Space Physiology
59. Noise, air pollution, and the autonomic nervous system

V. Pathophysiological Mechanisms
60. The autonomic inflammatory reflex
61. Reactive Oxygen Species and Oxidative Stress.
62. Insulin Resistance and the autonomic nervous System
63. Salt Sensitivity of Blood Pressure
64. Airway Afferent Nerves

VI. Evaluation of Autonomic Function
65. Clinical Evaluation of Autonomic Disorders
66. Autonomic Function Testing
67. Tilt Table Testing
68. Patient Symptom and Rating Scales: OHQ, COMPASS, UMSARS
69. Sympathetic Microneurography and clinical applications
70. Assessment of the Autonomic Control of the Cardiovascular System by a Frequency Domain Approach
71. Assessment of Sudomotor Function
72. Plasma Catechols
73. Imaging cortical and subcortical sites involved in cardiovascular control
74. Clinical sympathetic Imaging
75. Cutaneous Autonomic Innervation: Assessment by Skin Biopsy
76. Sympatho-effector transduction

VII. Cardiovascular Disorders
77. Neurally (Autonomically) Mediated Syncope
78. Orthostatic Hypotension
79. Spectrum of orthostatic hypotension
80. Baroreflex Failure
81. Essential Hypertension
82. Obesity-Associated hypertension
83. Pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma
84. Autonomic Dysfunction in Heart Failure
85. Myocardial stunning and Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy
86. The Autonomic Nervous System and Cardiac Arrhythmias

VIII. Congenital Autonomic Disorders
87. Deficiencies of Tetrahydrobiopterin, Tyrosine Hydroxylase and Aromatic L-Amino Acid Decarboxylase
88. Congenital disorders of noradrenergic neurotransmission
89. Monoamine Oxidase Deficiency
90. Congenital Central Hypoventilation Syndrome (CCHS) and PHOX2B Pathogenic Variants
91. Hereditary Autonomic Neuropathies
92. Familial Dysautonomia (Riley-Day Syndrome)

IX. Autonomic Synucleinopathies
93. a-Synuclein and Neurodegeneration
94. Multiple System Atrophy
95. Parkinson's Disease
96. Dementia with Lewy Bodies
97. Pure Autonomic Failure

X. Peripheral Autonomic Disorders
98. Small Fiber Neuropathy
99. Diabetic Autonomic Dysfunction
100. Amyloidosis and Autonomic Failure
101. Autoimmune Autonomic Syndromes
102. Paraneoplastic Autonomic Dysfunction
103. Autonomic Disturbances Following Spinal Cord Injury
104. Drug-Induced Autonomic Dysfunction

XI. Autonomic Syndromes
105. Postural Tachycardia Syndrome. Pathophysiological Mechanisms
106. Postural Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS)
107. Joint Hypermobility and Dysautonomia
108. Mast Cell Activation and Autonomic Disorders
109. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and the Autonomic Nervous System

XII. Special Clinical Conditions
110. Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome
111. Migraine and the Autonomic Nervous System
112. Autonomic Regulation in Epilepsy
113. Autonomic complications of acute brain injury and stroke
114. Sleep Apnea
115. Panic Disorder
116. Disorders of Sweating
117. Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
118. Abdominal Pain and Cyclic Vomiting
119. Male Erectile Dysfunction

XIII. Management of Neurogenic Orthostatic Hypotension
120. Management of Orthostatic Hypotension - Introduction
121. Physical Measures
122. Dietary Sodium and Fludrocortisone
123. Water and the Osmopressor Response
124. Midodrine
125. Droxidopa
126. Pyridostigmine in Autonomic Disorders
127. Norepinephrine Transporter Inhibitors in Autonomic Disorders
128. Acarbose and octreotide for the treatment of postprandial hypotension
129. Management of Supine Hypertension of Autonomic Failure
130. Anesthetic considerations in patients with autonomic dysfunction
131. Chronic constitutional hypotension

XIV. Autonomic Neuromodulation as a Treatment Strategy
132. Renal Denervation as Therapeutic Intervention
133. Baroreflex amplification by carotid sinus stimulation
134. Targeting Carotid Body Chemoreceptors as a therapeutic intervention
135. Bionic Baroreflex
136. Therapeutic targeting of splanchnic nerves

XV. Novel Approaches in Autonomic Neuroscience
137. Modeling the Autonomic Nervous System
138. Optogenetics: Application to central autonomic regulatory pathways
139. Mapping the Autonomic Nervous System: The SPARC project
140. Autonomic Nervous System-Gut-Microbiome Axis in Chronic Diseases
141. Novel Fluid Biomarkers in Synucleinopathies
142. Novel Disease-Modifying Treatments for Synucleinopathies