To study the central neural mechanisms involved in malignant ventricular arrhythmia, concentrations of norepinephrine in the cerebrospinal fluid were measured during behavioral stimulation and during coronary artery occlusion. Pigs were instrumented via thoracotomy with catheters to measure mean arterial pressure and plasma catecholamines and with silk snares around the left anterior descending coronary artery for occlusion after recovery from surgery. Cannulas were placed in the lateral ventricle of the brain to sample cerebrospinal fluid. Behavioral arousal was induced by lifting the pig in a canvas sling for 5 min. Mean arterial pressure, heart rate, and both plasma and cerebrospinal fluid norepinephrine concentrations increased significantly after lifting stimulation. In a separate experiment, 5 min after coronary artery occlusion, both plasma catecholamines and norepinephrine in cerebrospinal fluid were significantly elevated. Furthermore, pigs in which ventricular fibrillation occurred after occlusion had significantly higher concentrations of norepinephrine in cerebrospinal fluid before coronary artery occlusion.