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Query: UMLS:C0036572 (seizures)
80,221 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The behavioural and neuropathological effects of both systemic and intrahippocampal injections of paraquat dichloride (1,1'-dimethyl 4,4'-bipyridinium dichloride) were studied in rats. Paraquat (0.1-1.0 mumol) injected into the dorsal hippocampus, produced limbic motor seizures within a few minutes of injection followed by neuronal damage in the CA1 and CA3 pyramidal cell layers, pyriform cortex, dentate granule cell layer and in the hilus fascia dentata at 24 hr (n = 9 rats). A smaller dose of paraquat (10 nmol) was ineffective. The effects of intrahippocampal injections of paraquat (1 mumol) were prevented by administering it together with atropine (50 nmol; n = 6 rats) or by giving it 60 min. after MK 801 (0.3 mg.kg-1 intraperitoneally). Systemic injections of paraquat (20-100 mg.kg-1) also produced forelimb clonus and rearing in 10 out of 15 animals. Neuronal cell death was found 24 hr later in 9 of these rats and was restricted to the pyriform cortex, the brain region with the highest concentrations of paraquat. Atropine (150 mg.kg-1 intraperitoneally given 60 min. previously) completely prevented the motor seizures but cell death still occurred in 2 of the 6 animals tested. In conclusion, both systemic and intrahippocampal injections of paraquat produced behavioural excitation accompanied 24 hr later by brain damage and antagonist studies suggested involvement of muscarinic and NMDA receptors in the neurotoxic mechanism.
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PMID:Production of limbic motor seizures and brain damage by systemic and intracerebral injections of paraquat in rats. 148 May 53

1. Subcutaneous kainate injection in rats evoked acute seizures and led to cell loss in the hilus and areas CA1 and CA3, which resembled the pattern of hippocampal sclerosis often associated with temporal lobe epilepsy in humans. 2. Simultaneous intra- and extracellular recordings were performed in the stratum pyramidale of area CA1 while stimulating in the stratum radiatum close to the recording electrodes. Responses from control slices consisted of a brief excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) with only one action potential, corresponding to a single extracellular population spike, followed by a clear biphasic inhibitory postsynaptic potential (IPSP). In slices from kainate-treated animals, however, stimulation evoked a prolonged EPSP, which often triggered multiple action potentials corresponding to multiple extracellular population spikes. 3. In slices from kainate-treated animals, the mean amplitude but not the duration of the stimulation-evoked IPSP was reduced. The extent of the kainate-induced loss of inhibition in area CA1 was highly variable. 4. Low concentrations of bicuculline in control slices led to a moderate hyperexcitability, which consisted of multiple population spikes and mirrored the responses observed in slices from kainate-treated animals in normal ACSF. Prolonged application of 10-30 microM bicuculline for > or = 30 min led to a much higher level of hyperexcitability, which was similar in slices from controls and kainate-treated rats. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that the hyperexcitability of CA1 pyramidal neurons following kainate treatment is mainly due to decreased GABAA-receptor-mediated inhibition and that the loss of inhibition is only partial.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Persistent hyperexcitability in isolated hippocampal CA1 of kainate-lesioned rats. 149 Dec 62

Low doses of quinolinic acid (QUIN) administered intracerebroventricularly (ICV) to rats produced either no damage or mild to moderate damage in the pyramidal cell layer of the hippocampus and resulted in mild, limbic seizures in the majority of animals treated. The same dose of QUIN following ICV pretreatment with the nitric oxide synthase inhibitor N-nitro-L-arginine (NARG), produced extensive hippocampal lesions with complete loss of the pyramidal layer in 50% of the animals, and moderate damage with total neuronal loss in areas CA1 and CA3 in the remainder of the group. Animals treated with both NARG and QUIN also exhibited a greater incidence of severe convulsive behavior (9/11) and 3 deaths. Pretreatment with the nitric oxide-generating drug molsidomine attenuated the enhanced toxicity observed with combined NARG-QUIN treatment, resulting primarily in no detectable hippocampal damages and mild seizures resembling those produced by QUIN alone. Administration of NARG alone produced neither seizure activity nor histological evidence of neurotoxicity. We conclude that inhibition of nitric oxide production with NARG potentiates the neurotoxicity of quinolinic acid in the rat hippocampus.
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PMID:Potentiation of quinolinate-induced hippocampal lesions by inhibition of NO synthesis. 149 87

A new model of status epilepticus (SE), which was induced by intermittent electrical stimulation (20 Hz for 20 sec every min for 180 min) of the deep prepyriform cortex, has been developed in the conscious rat. SE was induced in 9 of 16 rats in the drug-free group. The number of stimulation trains required to induce SE in this status subgroup was 125.6 +/- 12.7 (mean +/- SEM) and the mean duration of self-sustained seizure activity (SSSA) occurring after cessation of the stimulation session was 295.4 +/- 111.4 min. Some animals showed secondary generalized seizures. Significant cell loss was observed in the hippocampal CA3 pyramidal cell layer ipsilateral to the stimulation site and bilateral CA1 areas in the status subgroup compared with the group subjected to sham operation. In addition, there was a significant negative correlation between the duration of SSSA subsequent to the stimulation session and the total number of intact pyramidal neurons observed in the bilateral CA1 and ipsilateral CA3 subfields of the status subgroup. There were significant differences between the status and non-status subgroups with respect to the number of afterdischarges (ADs) and the total AD duration during the stimulation session. Pretreatment with phenobarbital (30 mg/kg) prevented the development of SE and hippocampal cell loss completely. Pretreatment with MK-801, a non-competitive N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist (0.25 or 1 mg/kg), also prevented hippocampal cell loss, although it did not block SE generation completely, which suggests dissociation of the mechanisms underlying the development of SE and hippocampal damage. These results indicate that prolonged SSSA actually causes hippocampal damage and it is critically dependent upon NMDA receptor participation.
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PMID:Mechanisms in the development of limbic status epilepticus and hippocampal neuron loss: an experimental study in a model of status epilepticus induced by kindling-like electrical stimulation of the deep prepyriform cortex in rats. 153 85

In several clinical situations, such as hyposmolar states and hypoxia-ischemia, reductions in the size of the extracellular space are associated with increased seizure susceptibility. Nonsynaptic interactions provide a likely means of mediating the effect of extracellular space on seizure susceptibility. Synchronous bursting of CA1 hippocampal neurons occurs via nonsynaptic mechanisms in solutions containing very low [Ca2+] and excitatory amino acid antagonists. We tested the hypothesis that lowering the osmolality of the extracellular medium could induce nonsynaptic bursting in the dentate gyrus, even though it is normally resistant to this treatment. Extracellular field potentials were recorded in the dentate gyrus and CA1 area of rat hippocampal slices. In the low-[Ca2+] solution with normal osmolality, bursts of population spikes were recorded from the dentate gyrus in only 7% of the slices, but solutions with decreased osmolality induced bursting in 63%. Corresponding values for the CA1 area were 60 and 73%, respectively. Mannitol, which reversed the hyposmolar state, abolished bursting in both regions. This study demonstrates that reducing the size of the extracellular space by lowering extracellular osmolality can transform a seizure-resistant area into one that exhibits robust epileptiform activity.
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PMID:Osmolality and nonsynaptic epileptiform bursts in rat CA1 and dentate gyrus. 154 52

A single systemic administration of acromelic acid, a novel kainate analogue (kainoid), induces a series of characteristic behavioral changes in association with selective damage of interneurons in the caudal spinal cord in adult rats. When an effective dose of acromelic acid (5 mg/kg) was systemically administered, forced extension of hindlimbs with or without cramps appeared in all rats. In the course of the intensified hindlimb extension, 10 of 16 rats suffered from generalized convulsive seizures during which 6 rats died without apparent neuropathological change. Of 4 surviving rats that experienced seizures, two developed long-lasting spastic paraparesis which remained unchanged for at least 3 months, whereas the other two were normal in behavior on the days following the administration. In lower doses (less than 4 mg/kg), the rats transiently displayed forced extension of hindlimbs, and in a higher dose (5.5 mg/kg), all rats died during an attack of severe generalized convulsion. Neuropathological changes were observed only in the rats with persistent paraparesis, in which neuron damage was identified selectively in small interneurons in the lumbosacral cord. The morphological change of the degenerated spinal interneurons resembles that of degenerated hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells seen after systemic administration of kainate. Large motoneurons, spinal roots, and white matter of the spinal cord were well preserved. Unlike the case of systemic administration of kainate, other structures in the central and peripheral nervous system and muscles were morphologically intact except the hippocampal CA4 and the stratum moleculare-lacnosum in which there were reactive astrocytes. The regional difference between kainate-induced and acromelate-induced neuron damage suggests that systemically administered acromelic acid, a kainoid, induces selective neuron damage through activating a particular kainate receptor subtype. The clinicopathological feature of the paraparetic rats resembles closely that of stiffman syndrome, a progressive human neurological disorder with selective loss of interneurons in the spinal cord.
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PMID:Acromelic acid, a novel kainate analogue, induces long-lasting paraparesis with selective degeneration of interneurons in the rat spinal cord. 157 22

A few nanograms of tetanus toxin injected into a rat hippocampus causes a chronic epileptic syndrome characterized by brief seizures that recur intermittently for about 6 weeks. Cognitive and other behavioural impairments persist after the seizures and other epileptic electrographic activity have remitted, and may be permanent. Our previous studies suggested that the behavioural changes following seizure remission were an indication of functional impairment associated with decreased neuronal excitability rather than with neuronal loss. The conclusion that neurons were preserved relied on qualitative histological observations and, indirectly, on electrophysiological measurements of the amplitudes of antidromic population spikes. Recently, gross histopathology has been described in a quantitative histological study of rats 7-10 days after they had received rather higher doses of intrahippocampal tetanus toxin. Here we report a quantitative histological study of hippocampi from rats which had gained remission from seizures induced by low doses of tetanus toxin. Adult Sprague Dawley rats received unilateral injections of 3-4 ng (about 6-8 mouse LD50) tetanus toxin, or vehicle, into the dorsal hippocampus. The first experiment confirmed that postsynaptic evoked responses recorded from pyramidal cells were depressed 10-19 weeks after injection. Unexpectedly, there also was a decrease of 20% in the antidromic response from CA3a contralateral to the injection. However, cell counts in these hippocampi revealed no change in pyramidal cell numbers. The second experiment used rats from two breeding colonies, prepared for histology 7 weeks after injection. Hippocampal pyramidal cell numbers were within the normal range in all but three of the 24 rats that had received tetanus toxin. These three had lesions of the CA1 pyramidal layer contralateral to the injection. The lesions were of the order of 2 mm in diameter, and were associated with glial proliferation. When these three cases were excluded, there remained a small increase in glial density in CA1 of the toxin-injected rats. In addition, toxin-injected rats from one of the colonies were susceptible to a pathology known as acidophylic or dark cell change. These occurred in 11 of 18 toxin-injected rats from this colony, in all divisions of the pyramidal layer, in both the injected and the contralateral hippocampus (where parallel studies revealed independent secondary epileptic foci). We conclude that loss of pyramidal neurons is not necessary for the persistent behavioural changes in this model.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
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PMID:Neuropathology of the chronic epileptic syndrome induced by intrahippocampal tetanus toxin in rat: preservation of pyramidal cells and incidence of dark cells. 157

Immunocytochemistry with specific antisera was used to assess regional levels of six immediate early gene encoded proteins (KROX-24, c-FOS, FOS B, c-JUN, JUN B and JUN D) in the rat hippocampus after 15 min of bicuculline-induced seizures. Serial sections of the dorsal hippocampus were examined at various postictal recovery periods up to 24 h. The results demonstrate a complex temporal and spatial pattern of immediate early gene synthesis and accumulation. Three major categories of immediate early gene products could best be distinguished in the dentate gyrus: KROX-24 and c-FOS showed a concurrent rapid rise with peak levels at 2 h and a return to baseline levels within 8 h after seizure termination. FOS B, c-JUN and JUN B levels increased more gradually with peak intensities in the dentate gyrus reached at 4 h. These immediate early gene products showed above normal levels in various hippocampal subpopulations up to 24 h. JUN D exhibited the most delayed onset combined with a prolonged increase of seizure-induced immunoreactivity. Irrespective of this differential temporal expression profile of individual transcription factors, the sequence of induction in the hippocampal subpopulations was identical for all immediate early gene-encoded proteins examined: first in the dentate gyrus granule cells followed by CA1 and CA3 neurons, respectively. Our data indicate an asynchronous synthesis of several immediate early gene-encoded proteins in the brain after status epilepticus. FOS and JUN proteins act via homo- or heterodimer complexes at the AP-1 and other DNA binding sites. The different time-courses for individual immediate early gene products strongly suggest, that at different time-points after status epilepticus, different AP-1 complexes are effective. In vitro studies have shown that different AP-1 complexes possess different DNA binding affinities as well as different transcriptional regulatory effects. Our results suggest that these molecular mechanisms are also effective in vivo.
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PMID:Induction of immediate early gene encoded proteins in the rat hippocampus after bicuculline-induced seizures: differential expression of KROX-24, FOS and JUN proteins. 160 23

The membrane currents responsible for the sustained potential shifts associated with electrographic seizures and with spreading depression in hippocampus were studied in the anesthetized rat. Probes incorporating 16 sensors in a straight line, spaced at 150-microns distances, were recording the potential changes with DC-coupled amplifiers in CA1 and dentate gyrus (DG) of one hemisphere. Seizures and spreading depression were provoked by repetitive stimulation of different afferent pathways. Seizures always began in DG before CA1, regardless of the pathway stimulated. Tonic seizures were associated with a sustained negative potential shift that was largest in the cell body layers. Current source density was computed from these recordings and confirmed the presence of a current sink limited to the cell body layer throughout the duration of electrographic seizures. Spreading depression was associated with a very large sink located in the layer of apical dendrites, maximal among the proximal segment of dendrites, to which the cell body layer served as a source. We conclude that seizures are associated with an inward current in neuron cell bodies, probably flowing through membrane channels of as yet no know physiological function.
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PMID:Current source density of sustained potential shifts associated with electrographic seizures and with spreading depression in rat hippocampus. 161 32

In situ hybridization techniques were used to analyse the spatiotemporal pattern of brain-derived neurotrophic factor messenger RNA elevation associated with kainic acid-induced seizure activity in the rat. Pronounced increases in hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor messenger RNA levels were observed as early as 30 min following the onset of behavioral seizures. The greatest increase (10-fold) occurred in the dentate granule cell layer, while pyramidal layers CA1, CA3, and CA4 exhibited increases of two- to six-fold. Peak elevation of brain-derived neurotrophic factor messenger RNA in CA1 hippocampal region was evident at 4 h in CA3, and in the dentate granule layer at 30 min postseizure. Elevations persisted in the dentate and hilar regions to four days, while the increases in CA1 and CA3 returned to control levels by 16 h following seizure. Significant increases in brain-derived neurotrophic factor messenger RNA were also observed in the superficial layers of cortex (II and III) and in the piriform cortex which reached peak elevations by 8 h. No detectable changes were observed in the dorsomedial thalamus. Although histologically defined pyramidal and granule cell layers displayed relatively uniform increases in brain-derived neurotrophic factor messenger RNA in response to kainate, a closer examination of the labeling patterns using emulsion autoradiography revealed discrete areas of high grain densities overlapping uniform, moderate hybridization densities in the dentate granule cell layer and CA3, suggesting that the capacity to upregulate brain-derived neurotrophic factor messenger RNA in these regions may differ among individual neurons. In conclusion, our studies revealed that brain-derived neurotrophic factor messenger RNA induction in response to systemic kainate administration differs in hippocampal and cortical areas, in magnitude, time of onset and duration. The observed temperospatial pattern does not correspond in a simple way to increases in metabolic or electrical activity associated with seizures or neuronal vulnerability coincident with the seizures.
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PMID:Regionally specific and rapid increases in brain-derived neurotrophic factor messenger RNA in the adult rat brain following seizures induced by systemic administration of kainic acid. 164 Nov 25


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