Neuropharmacology and Neurochemistry

Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism

One of the body's organs with the highest metabolic activity is the brain. The brain doesn't have much energy left over to store, and it gets practically all of its energy from aerobic glucose oxidation. As a result, it needs a constant supply of oxygen and glucose to meet its energy needs. Blood flow and tissue metabolism are intimately related in the majority of the body's organs. Increased blood flow results from an increase in tissue metabolism, such as that experienced during muscle contraction or changes in brain neuronal activity (active hyperaemia).