Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, St. Mary's Hospital, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Cholecystokinin (CCK) is a neurotransmitter found in high density in the brains of mammals. Microiontophoretic studies showing that benzodiazepines selectively antagonized CCK-induced excitation of rat hippocampal neurons have led to the hypothesis that CCK is an anxiogenic peptide. The hypothesis was supported by demonstrations that CCK-tetrapeptide (CCK4) induces panic attacks in humans. This paper reviews phases of investigations which studied the validity of CCK4 as a panicogenic agent and research strategies for the study of panic disorder using CCK4 as an investigative tool.