Abbreviations
AA: arachidonic acid
AAADC: aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase
α-BTX: α-bungarotoxin
AC: adenylyl cyclase
ACh: acetylcholine
AChE: acetylcholinesterase
AD: aldehyde dehydrogenase
ADH: alcohol dehydrogenase
anti-ChE: anti-cholinesterase
AP: action potential
AR: aldehyde reductase
AV: atrioventricular
CaM: calmodulin
CCK: cholecystokinin
CGRP: calcitonin gene–related peptide
ChAT: choline acetyl transferase
CHT1: Choline transporter
CNS: central nervous system
COMT: catechol-O-methyltransferase
CSF: cerebrospinal fluid
DA: dopamine
DAG: diacylglycerol
DAT: DA transporter
DβH: dopamine β-hydroxylase
DOMA: 3,4-dihydroxymandelic acid
DOPEG: 3,4-dihydroxyphenyl glycol
DOPGAL: dihydroxyphenylglycolaldehyde
ENS: enteric nervous system
ENT: extraneuronal transporter
EPI: epinephrine
EPP: end-plate potential
EPSP: excitatory postsynaptic potential
ET: endothelin
GABA: γ-aminobutyric acid
GI: gastrointestinal
GRK: G protein-coupled receptor kinase
GPCR: G protein–coupled receptor
HR: heart rate
5HT: serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine)
HVA: homovanillic acid
IP3: inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate
IPSP: inhibitory postsynaptic potential
KO: knockout
mAChR: muscarinic acetylcholine receptor
MAO: monoamine oxidase
MAPK: mitogen-activated protein kinase
mepps: miniature end-plate potentials
MOPEG: 3-methyl,4-hydroxyphenylglycol
MOPGAL: monohydroxyphenylglycolaldehyde
nAChR: nicotinic ACh receptor
NANC: nonadrenergic, noncholinergic
NE: norepinephrine (noradrenaline)
NET: norepinephrine transporter
NMJ: neuromuscular junction (of skeletal muscle)
NO: nitric oxide
NOS: nitric oxide synthase
NPY: neuropeptide Y
NSF: N-ethylmaleamide sensitive factor
PACAP: pituitary adenylyl cyclase–activating peptide
PG_: prostaglandin _, as in PGE2
PK_: protein kinase _, as in PKA
PL_: phospholipase _, as in PLA2, PLC, etc.
PNMT: phenylethanolamine-N-methyltransferase
PTX: pertussis toxin
rNTPase: releasable nucleotidase
SA: sinoatrial
SERT: serotonin transporter
SLC: solute carrier
SNAP: soluble NSF attachment protein, synaptosome-associated protein
SNARE: SNAP receptor
SST: somatostatin
STN: solitary tract nucleus
TH: tyrosine hydroxylase
VAChT: vesicular ACh transporter
VAT: vesicle-associated transporter
VIP: vasoactive intestinal polypeptide
VMA: vanillyl mandelic acid
VMAT2: vesicular uptake transporter
The autonomic nervous system, also called the visceral, vegetative, or involuntary nervous system, is distributed widely throughout the body and regulates autonomic functions that occur without conscious control. In the periphery, it consists of nerves, ganglia, and plexuses that innervate the heart, blood vessels, glands, other visceral organs, and smooth muscle in various tissues.
Afferent fibers from visceral structures are the first ...