Pattern- and age-dependency of the antiepileptic effects induced by valproic acid in the rat hippocampus.

The effects induced by the antiepileptic drug valproic acid were studied in the CA3 subfield of in vitro hippocampal slices obtained from young (16- to 27-day-old) and adult (over 60-day-old) rats. Spontaneous epileptiform discharges were induced by the addition of the convulsant 4-aminopyridine to the medium. Valproic acid (0.5 mM) selectively blocked the ictal epileptiform discharges in slices obtained from young rats. Interictal epileptiform discharges disappeared during perfusion with higher doses of valproic acid (2 mM). This blockade of interictal epileptiform activity was not observed when valproic acid (0.5-5 mM) was tested in hippocampal slices from adult rats. Thus, in the hippocampus of young rats, 4-aminopyridine-induced ictal activity is more sensitive to valproic acid than are interictal discharges. Moreover, valproic acid is effective in controlling interictal discharges in the young, but not in the adult rat hippocampus.     

Protective effect of interleukin-10 on the development of epileptiform activity induced by brief hypoxic episodes in the rat hippocampal slices

The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of interleukin-10 (IL-10) (1 and 10 ng/ml) on the development of epileptiform activity induced by brief hypoxic episodes in CA1 area of rat hippocampal slices. Three three-minute hypoxic episodes induced a sustained decrease in the threshold of evoked population spike (PS) burst and an increase in the number of PSs in the PS response. IL-10 (1 ng/ml) completely abolished the development of epileptiform activity whereas the effect of IL-10 (10 ng/ml) was weaker. The protective effect of IL-10 on the hyperexcitability of the local neuronal network in hippocampal slices indicate that this cytokine can function as an intercellular mediator in the brain. The present results are the first experimental evidence of a protective role of anti-inflammatory IL-10 in the development of epileptiform events induced by brief episodes of hypoxia in the hippocampus.     

高频电刺激对大鼠海马脑片癫痫样放电特性影响的研究

本文采用电极阵列检测技术,在大鼠海马脑切片上诱导出稳定的癫痫样放电,分析、研究130 Hz的高频电刺激(high-frequency stimulation,HFS) CA3区时,海马切片在癫痫发作间期放电(inter-ictal discharges,IID)和发作期放电(ictal discharges,ID)的各项参数、癫痫样放电地起始位点、传播方向和传输速率以及各频段的功率谱密度.结果显示:高频电刺激可以有效地降低癫痫发作期的幅值、减少持续时间、增长潜伏时间、抑制癫痫样放电由IID向ID的转变等.提示高频电刺激抑制癫痫的作用机制是通过促进神经元之间的抑制性传输系统,并且抑制海马神经元之间的兴奋性连接,从而达到抑制效果.     

应用多电极记录技术研究海马切片癫痫样放电的起始点和传播方向

弄清癫痫样放电的起始位置和传播方向对研究癫痫机制及其临床治疗有重要意义．为了解决这一问题,应用微电极阵列对低镁人工脑脊液诱导的Sprague-Dawley (SD)大鼠海马切片的癫痫样放电进行记录．分别用癫痫样放电的两种成分：场电位和多单元信号来确定癫痫样放电的起始位置和传播方向．首先计算并比较了海马切片锥体细胞层位置电极记录的癫痫样放电场电位的起始时间,由起始时间的先后关系确定癫痫样放电在锥体细胞层的起始位置和传播方向．然后用整个切片上记录的癫痫样放电的多单元信号动作电位序列进行互相关分析,进一步确定了癫痫样放电在整个海马切片内的起始位置和传播方向．结果显示,CA3区的癫痫样放电具有比CA1区更高的幅度和更长的持续时间,表明CA3区有更高的兴奋性．对于记录到的同步癫痫样放电,CA3b区场电位和多单元信号均比CA3c和CA1区出现更早,起始位置和其随后位置之间的传播延　时与二者之间的距离成正相关．因此,在低镁模型的大鼠海马切片中,癫痫样放电起始于CA3b区并分别向CA3c和CA1区传播．     

Rosiglitazone Suppresses In Vitro Seizures in Hippocampal Slice by Inhibiting Presynaptic Glutamate Release in a Model of Temporal Lobe Epilepsy

Peroxisomal proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) is a nuclear hormone receptor whose agonist, rosiglitazone has a neuroprotective effect to hippocampal neurons in pilocarpine-induced seizures. Hippocampal slice preparations treated in Mg²⁺ free medium can induce ictal and interictal-like epileptiform discharges, which is regarded as an in vitro model of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor-mediated temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). We applied rosiglitazone in hippocampal slices treated in Mg²⁺ free medium. The effects of rosiglitazone on hippocampal CA1-Schaffer collateral synaptic transmission were tested. We also examined the neuroprotective effect of rosiglitazone toward NMDA excitotoxicity on cultured hippocampal slices. Application of 10μM rosiglitazone significantly suppressed amplitude and frequency of epileptiform discharges in CA1 neurons. Pretreatment with the PPARγ antagonist GW9662 did not block the effect of rosiglitazone on suppressing discharge frequency, but reverse the effect on suppressing discharge amplitude. Application of rosiglitazone suppressed synaptic transmission in the CA1-Schaffer collateral pathway. By miniature excitatory-potential synaptic current (mEPSC) analysis, rosiglitazone significantly suppressed presynaptic neurotransmitter release. This phenomenon can be reversed by pretreating PPARγ antagonist GW9662. Also, rosiglitazone protected cultured hippocampal slices from NMDA-induced excitotoxicity. The protective effect of 10μM rosiglitazone was partially antagonized by concomitant high dose GW9662 treatment, indicating that this effect is partially mediated by PPARγ receptors. In conclusion, rosiglitazone suppressed NMDA receptor-mediated epileptiform discharges by inhibition of presynaptic neurotransmitter release. Rosiglitazone protected hippocampal slice from NMDA excitotoxicity partially by PPARγ activation. We suggest that rosiglitazone could be a potential agent to treat patients with TLE.     

GABA- and glutamate-mediated network activity in the hippocampus of neonatal and juvenile rats revealed by fast calcium imaging

In the rat hippocampus, during the first postnatal week, network activity is characterized by GABA-driven giant depolarizing potentials (GDPs) associated with calcium signals that are readily blocked when the GABAA antagonist bicuculline is applied to the bath. Towards the end of the first postnatal week, in concomitance with the shift of GABA responses from the depolarizing to the hyperpolarizing direction, functional glutamatergic connections start appearing. At this developmental stage, application of bicuculline blocks GABAA-mediated inhibition and induces the appearance of interictal epileptiform discharges. In the present experiments, we have used a high spatio-temporal resolution imaging system to compare, on a time scale of tens of ms, the onset and propagation of fast calcium transients generated within a GABAergic or glutamatergic network. We found that, during the first postnatal week, calcium signals associated to evoked GDPs arise from the activation of a local circuitry of neurons spanning the stratum radiatum and the pyramidal layer. Similar activation patterns were elicited by focal application of GABA in the presence of kynurenic acid, a broad spectrum ionotropic glutamatergic antagonist, and were blocked by bicuculline. During the second postnatal week, in the presence of bicuculline, calcium signals associated with interictal discharges evoked by stimulation of glutamatergic fibres propagated along the well-defined three-synaptic pathway from the dentate gyrus to the CA1 hippocampal area.     

VEGF receptor-2 (Flk-1) overexpression in mice counteracts focal epileptic seizures

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was first described as an angiogenic agent, but has recently also been shown to exert various neurotrophic and neuroprotective effects in the nervous system. These effects of VEGF are mainly mediated by its receptor, VEGFR-2, which is also referred to as the fetal liver kinase receptor 1 (Flk-1). VEGF is up-regulated in neurons and glial cells after epileptic seizures and counteracts seizure-induced neurodegeneration. In vitro, VEGF administration suppresses ictal and interictal epileptiform activity caused by AP4 and 0 Mg(2+) via Flk-1 receptor. We therefore explored whether increased VEGF signaling through Flk-1 overexpression may regulate epileptogenesis and ictogenesis in vivo. To this extent, we used transgenic mice overexpressing Flk-1 postnatally in neurons. Intriguingly, Flk-1 overexpressing mice were characterized by an elevated threshold for seizure induction and a decreased duration of focal afterdischarges, indicating anti-ictal action. On the other hand, the kindling progression in these mice was similar to wild-type controls. No significant effects on blood vessels or glia cells, as assessed by Glut1 and GFAP immunohistochemistry, were detected. These results suggest that increased VEGF signaling via overexpression of Flk-1 receptors may directly affect seizure activity even without altering angiogenesis. Thus, Flk-1 could be considered as a novel target for developing future gene therapy strategies against ictal epileptic activity.     

An iontophoretic survey of opioid peptide actions in the rat limbic system: in search of opiate epileptogenic mechanisms

Iontophoretic and micropressure drug application and lesion techniques were used to investigate the cellular source of rat limbic system epileptiform responses to opioid peptides [19]. Iontophoretically applied morphine, methionine enkephalin or beta-endorphin inhibited the spontaneous or glutamate-activated firing of the great majority of single neurons in medial and lateral septum, amygdala and cingulate cortex. These inhibitions in firing were antagonized by iontophoresis of naloxone. In contrast to inhibitory effects in other limbic areas, morphine and the opioid peptides predominantly excited CA1 and CA3 pyramidal neurons in a naloxone-sensitive manner, as previously reported [36]. On rare occasions, iontophoretically applied beta-endorphin evoked repetitive waveforms similar to interictal population EPSPs or spikes. Micropressure application of opiates and peptides also excited hippocampal neurons indicating such responses were not current-induced artefacts. The possible role of the excitatory cholinergic septal hippocampal pathway in the facilitatory response of hippocampal units to the opiates was tested with iontophoretically applied atropine and scopolamine, or lesions of septal nuclei. None of these manipulations reduced the opioid-induced excitations; rather, septal lesions enhanced excitatory and epileptiform responses to the opiates. These results support the hypothesis that opiate-evoked epileptiform activity in the limbic system arises from enhanced pyramidal cell activity in the hippocampal formation, probably by a non-cholinergic mechanism.     

Inhibitory processes of hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons following kindling-induced epilepsy in the rat

To determine the alterations in cellular function which may contribute to the chronic predisposition of neuronal tissue to epileptiform activity, the membrane properties and inhibitory processes of hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells were investigated using in vitro slices prepared from commissural-kindled rats. No changes were observed in resting membrane potential, input resistance, spike amplitude, and membrane time constant of "kindled" CA1 pyramidal neurons when compared with controls. There were also no differences between control and kindled preparations in the amplitude of recurrent inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSP) and in the duration of inhibition produced by either alvear (Alv) or stratum radiatum (SR) stimulation. Irrespective of group, repetitive stimulation of the Alv reduced the amplitude of the recurrent IPSP but failed to induce seizurelike activity. On the other hand, repetitive stimulation of SR frequently produced a neuronal burst discharge even though the duration and to some extent the amplitude of orthodromic inhibition was increased. On the basis of these data, it may be suggested that chronic changes in CA1 pyramidal cell membrane properties and transient reductions of inhibitory processes do not underlie the enhanced sensitivity of these neurons to seizure activity associated with kindling.     

Effects of ketamine on neuronal epileptiform responses in the cat neocortex

The effects of ketamine, an antagonist of NMDA receptors, on the neuronal epileptiform responses evoked by applications of strychnine, penicillin, or bicuculline to the suprasylvian gyrus were studied in cats. Ketamine either exerted no effect, or slightly decreased interictal high-amplitude depolarizing shifts of the membrane potential and depolarizing afterpotentials, which appeared spontaneously or were evoked by intracortical stimulation. Repetitive electrical stimulation of the epileptogenic cortical regions resulted in the appearance of autogenerated ictal activity lasting up to several tens of seconds; this activity was produced against the background of a depolarization of neuronal membranes. After ketamine injections, such stimulations evoked no ictal activity in the neurons, or the discharges became much shorter. The results of our study show that the NMDA-dependent postsynaptic components play a more important role in the development of neocortical ictal activity compared with the interictal activity.Neirofiziologiya/Neurophysiology, Vol. 27, No. 1, pp. 32–35, January–February, 1995.     

Epileptic activity during early postnatal life in the AY-9944 model of atypical absence epilepsy

Atypical absence epilepsy (AAE) is an intractable disorder characterized by slow spike-and-wave discharges in electroencephalograms (EEGs) and accompanied by severe cognitive dysfunction and neurodevelopmental or neurological deficits in humans. Administration of the cholesterol biosynthesis inhibitor AY-9944 (AY) during the postnatal developmental period induces AAE in animals; however, the neural mechanism of seizure development remains largely unknown. In this study, we characterized the cellular manifestations of AY-induced AAE in the mouse. Treatment of brain slices with AY increased membrane excitability of hippocampal CA1 neurons. AY treatment also increased input resistance of CA1 neurons during early postnatal days (PND) 5–10. However, these effects were not observed during late PND (14–21) or in adulthood (7–10 weeks). Notably, AY treatment elicited paroxysmal depolarizing shift (PDS)-like epileptiform discharges during the early postnatal period, but not during late PND or in adults. The PDS-like events were not compromised by application of glutamate or GABA receptor antagonists. However, the PDS-like events were abolished by blockage of voltage-gated Na⁺ channels. Hippocampal neurons isolated from an in vivo AY model of AAE showed similar PDS-like epileptiform discharges. Further, AY-treated neurons from T-type Ca²⁺ channel α1G knockout (Ca_v3.1^−/−) mice, which do not exhibit typical absence seizures, showed similar PDS-like epileptiform discharges. These results demonstrate that PDS-like epileptiform discharges during the early postnatal period are dependent upon Na⁺ channels and are involved in the generation of AY-induced AAE, which is distinct from typical absence epilepsy. Our findings may aid our understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms of clinical AAE in individuals, such as those with Lennox–Gastaut syndrome.     

2 types of chronic epileptogenesis in rabbits during kindling stimulation of the hippocampus

The development of convulsant readiness in rabbits during kindling electrical stimulation of the hippocamp was studied as was the dependence of the motor seizure pattern on the degree of epileptiform activity generalization in the CNS. The kindling electrical stimulation of the hippocamp gave rise to the formation in different rabbits of the two main types of afterdischarges. One of them was characterized by high-frequency and high-amplitude spikes (total duration 8-30 s) and the other one by continuous, rather long (50-100 s) hypersynchronous paroxysms. In the interictal period, the animals with the first type demonstrated the occurrence of spontaneous spikes (in all the brain structures under study) that sometimes progressed to a more or less prolonged seizure discharges. At the same time in the animals with the second type of afterdischarges the EEG in the interictal period was slightly different from normal. Despite this fact the seizures induced by electrical stimulation ran a milder course (short-term clonic seizures) in animals with the first type of afterdischarges as compared to those with the second type (long-term clonicotonic seizures). It is assumed that the severity of the motor seizure does not depend on the degree of epileptic activity generalization in the CNS.     

Diurnal actions of melatonin on epileptic activity in hippocampal slices of rats

Since melatonin receptors have been found in the hippocampus of mammals it has been suggested that melatonin can modulate neuronal functions of hippocampal cells. The effect of melatonin (10 nM/l and 1 microM/l) on frequency and amplitude of epileptiform field potentials (EFP) elicited by low Mg(2+) or by bicuculline was tested in the CA1 region of hippocampal slices of rats. In the low Mg(2+) model, melatonin, applied in a near physiological concentration of 10 nM/l, exerts no effect on EFP in slices prepared at night or during the day. In a concentration of 1 microM/l, however, melatonin enhances the frequency of EFP to approximately 140% in slices prepared during the day. This effect was suppressed through simultaneous administration of the melatonin receptor antagonist luzindole (10 microM/l). In contrast, melatonin did not affect epileptic activity in slices prepared at night. Epileptiform discharges elicited by blocking the GABAergic inhibition (bicuculline model) were not affected by melatonin, either during the day or at night. The results indicate that melatonin affects epileptic activity in a diurnal manner and that the action of melatonin is different in relation to the epilepsy model.     

生长抑素对实验性癫痫大鼠海马CA1区的作用

在大鼠海马ＣＡ１区微量注射０．０３－０．３ｎｍｏｌ生长抑素（ｓｏｍａｔｏｓｔａｔｉｎ,ＳＳ）后,皮层脑电出现单个或成串的棘尖波,平均脑电总功率著升高,并且在一定范围内（０．００６－０．１５ｎｍｏｌ）具有剂量依赖性。在海马ＣＡ１微量注射０．０３－０．３ｎｍｏｌＳＳ可诱发大鼠表现出痫样行为,并可加重红藻氨酸诱导的大鼠痫样活动。在９５个大鼠海马脑片上细胞外记录ＳＳ对ＣＡ１区青霉素诱导的１１４个痫样放电单     

腺苷抑制海马神经元自发放电和谷氨酸所致癫痫样放电

应用细胞外记录单位放电技术,在大鼠海马脑片上观察腺苷（ａｄｃｎｏｓｉｎｅ,Ａｄｏ）对ＣＡ１区神经元自发和谷氨酸所致癫痫样放电的影响。实验结果如下：⑴２０个海刀ＣＡ１神经元在给予Ａｄｏ（０．０１－０．１μｍｏｌ／Ｌ）时自发放电频率降低,且呈明显的剂量依赖性;⑵在２２个ＣＡ１单位,应用腺苷受体非选择性拮抗剂８－苯茶碱（８－ｐｈｅｎｙｌ－ｔｈｅｏｐｈｙｌｌｉｎｅ,８－ＰＴ,０．５ｍｍｏｌ／Ｌ）和腺苷Ａ１     

4-Aminopyridine-induced epileptogenesis depends on activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase ERK

Extracellular signal-regulated kinases such as ERK1 [p44 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)] and ERK2 (p42 MAPK) are activated in the CNS under physiological and pathological conditions such as ischemia and epilepsy. Here, we studied the activation state of ERK1/2 in rat hippocampal slices during application of the K(+) channel blocker 4-aminopyridine (4AP, 50 micro m), a procedure that enhances synaptic transmission and leads to the appearance of epileptiform activity. Hippocampal slices superfused with 4AP-containing medium exhibited a marked activation of ERK1/2 phosphorylation that peaked within about 20 min. These effects were not accompanied by changes in the activation state of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), another member of the MAP kinase superfamily. 4AP-induced ERK1/2 activation was inhibited by the voltage-gated Na(+) channel blocker tetrodotoxin (1 micro m). We also found that application of the ERK pathway inhibitors U0126 (50 micro m) or PD98059 (100 micro m) markedly reduced 4AP-induced epileptiform synchronization, thus abolishing ictal discharges in the CA3 area. The effects induced by U0126 or PD98059 were not associated with changes in the amplitude and latency of the field potentials recorded in the CA3 area following electrical stimuli delivered in the dentate hylus. These data demonstrate that activation of ERK1/2 accompanies the appearance of epileptiform activity induced by 4AP and suggest a cause-effect relationship between the ERK pathway and epileptiform synchronization.     

NKCC1 transporter facilitates seizures in the developing brain

During development, activation of Cl(-)-permeable GABA(A) receptors (GABA(A)-R) excites neurons as a result of elevated intracellular Cl(-) levels and a depolarized Cl(-) equilibrium potential (E(Cl)). GABA becomes inhibitory as net outward neuronal transport of Cl(-) develops in a caudal-rostral progression. In line with this caudal-rostral developmental pattern, GABAergic anticonvulsant compounds inhibit motor manifestations of neonatal seizures but not cortical seizure activity. The Na(+)-K(+)-2Cl(-) cotransporter (NKCC1) facilitates the accumulation of Cl(-) in neurons. The NKCC1 blocker bumetanide shifted E(Cl) negative in immature neurons, suppressed epileptiform activity in hippocampal slices in vitro and attenuated electrographic seizures in neonatal rats in vivo. Bumetanide had no effect in the presence of the GABA(A)-R antagonist bicuculline, nor in brain slices from NKCC1-knockout mice. NKCC1 expression level versus expression of the Cl(-)-extruding transporter (KCC2) in human and rat cortex showed that Cl(-) transport in perinatal human cortex is as immature as in the rat. Our results provide evidence that NKCC1 facilitates seizures in the developing brain and indicate that bumetanide should be useful in the treatment of neonatal seizures.     

In vivo optical mapping of epileptic foci and surround inhibition in ferret cerebral cortex

The population of neurons participating in an epileptiform event varies from moment to moment. Most techniques currently used to localize epileptiform events in vivo have spatial and/or temporal sampling limitations. Here we show in an animal model that optical imaging based on intrinsic signals is an excellent method for in vivo mapping of clinically relevant epileptiform events, such as interictal spikes, ictal onsets, ictal spread and secondary homotopic foci. In addition, a decrease in the optical signal correlates spatially with a decrease in neuronal activity recorded from cortex surrounding an epileptic focus. Optical mapping of epilepsy might be a useful adjunct in the surgical treatment of neocortical epilepsy, which critically depends on the precise localization of intrinsically epileptogenic neurons.