In recent years, there has been growing interest in the development of epileptic seizures as an adverse effect of antibiotic therapy. The most commonl…

For patients suffering from sudden illnesses such as myocardial infarction and severe hypoglycemia, prompt administration of emergency medications is imperative, otherwise they may be at great risk of ...

Objective: This study tests the hypothesis that the ability of Hering’s nerve stimulation (HNS) to blunt seizure activity is dependent on the availability of dopamine in the amygdala. Methods: In 10 rats, Hering’s nerve (HN) on the right side was isolated and placed on an electrode and penicillin was locally placed on each rat’s left frontoparietal

Objective: To investigate the effects of thymoquinone (TQ) in a penicillin-induced epilepsy model in rats. Methods: This experimental study included 56 adult male Wistar rats. Experiments were performed in the Research Laboratory of the Department of Physiology, Medical School, Duzce University, Duzce, Turkey, between October 2013 and December 2014. Animals were divided into the following 7 groups: sham, control, only thymoquinone, vehicle (Dimethylsulfoxide), and doses of 10, 50, and 100 mg/kg of TQ. After rats were anesthetized, the left part of the skull was removed. A pair of silver/silver chloride electrodes was placed on the somatomotor area, and electrocorticographic recording was started. After 5 minutes basal activity was recorded, and TQ was applied intraperitoneally. At the thirtieth minute after TQ, epileptiform activity was induced by intracortical penicillin. The first spike latency, spike frequency, and the amplitude of epileptiform activity were analyzed statistically. Results: The different doses of TQ significantly increased the latency time to onset of first spike wave, and decreased the frequency, and amplitude of epileptiform activity in the first 20 minutes compared with the control group. Conclusion: Thymoquinone shows potential as an antiepileptic drug resulting from its effects of prolonged latency time, and reduced spike wave frequency and amplitude of epileptiform activity.

These results highlight the importance of tryptophan-kynurenine metabolism in infantile spasms and provide evidence for new-targeted therapies such as indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 1 inhibition or microbiota manipulation to promote kynurenic acid production as a strategy to reduce spasms in infantile spasms.

Article abstract The authors studied seizure activity with optical intrinsic signal (OIS) imaging in a rat seizure model. OIS, which measures vascular and metabolic effects associated with neuronal activity, showed significant cortical reflectance changes from penicillin-induced seizures, and correlated well with EEG epileptiform discharges. Furthermore, OIS changes often preceded initial EEG spikes. These observations suggest that OIS is well coupled with seizure activity, and may provide sensitive cues for seizure detection.

Background A responsive electrical stimulation pattern based on our recently developed novel seizure prediction method was designed to suppress the penicillin-induced epileptic seizures. Methodology Seizures were induced by Penicillin injection at rat cortex. A responsive electrical stimulation system was triggered prior to seizures predicted with phase synchronisation. Rats with induced seizures were stimulated by the electrical pulses at a responsive or 1 Hz periodic pattern of an open system. The effectiveness of stimulation on seizures suppression was assessed by measuring the average number and duration of seizures per hour. Results The prediction algorithm reliably identified seizures in real time and triggered the responsive stimulation. This type of electrical stimulation dramatically suppressed seizure activity and the performance was better than the open stimulation system with fewer and shorter seizures. Conclusions A responsive electrical stimulation system triggered by the phase synchronisation prediction is able to significantly suppress seizures. Significance Responsive electrical stimulation could achieve superior treatment performance and reduce power consumption and side effects.

Nature Communications - Spreading depression is a prolonged depolarization in the CNS associated with several neurological diseases. Here the authors demonstrate a reciprocal relationship between...

Probiotic supplementation may have anti-seizure effect by reducing proinflammatory cytokine and nitric oxide levels in epileptic rat brain.

Background: Epilepsy is a common neurological disorder that affects more than 50 million people worldwide. It is characterized by recurrent seizures resulting from excessive excitation or inadequate inhibition of neurons Previous studies demonstrated that low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) could suppress the number of epileptic signal bursts observed in electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings in rodents. However, whether ultrasound can inhibit epileptiform discharges in nonhuman primates is unclear.

IntroductionEpileptogenesis is understood as the plastic process that produces a persistent reorganization of the brain’s neural network after a precipitating injury (recurrent neonatal seizures, for instance) with a latent period, finally leading to neuronal hyperexcitability. Plasticity-related genes (PRGs), also known as lipid phosphate phosphatase-related proteins (PLPPRs), are regulators of mitochondrial membrane integrity and energy metabolism. This study was undertaken to determine whether PRG5 gene knockout contributes to the delayed hypersensitivity induced by developmental seizures and the aberrant sprouting of hippocampal mossy fibers, and to determine whether it is achieved through the mitochondrial pathway. Here, we developed a “twist” seizure model by coupling pilocarpine-induced juvenile seizures with later exposure to penicillin to test the long-term effects of PRG5 knockout on seizure latency through comparison with wild-type (WT) mice. Hippocampal mossy fiber sprouting (MFS) was detected by Timm staining. In order to clarify the mechanism of the adverse reactions triggered by PRG5 knockout, hippocampal HT22 neuronal cultures were exposed to glutamate, with or without PRG5 interference. Mitochondrial function, oxidative stress indicators and zinc ion content were detected.ResultsPRG5 gene knockout significantly reduced the seizure latency, and aggravated the lowered seizure threshold induced by developmental seizures. Besides, knockout of the PRG5 gene red...