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. 2012 Jan;125(1):30-7.
doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0404.2011.01521.x. Epub 2011 May 26.

Isolated seizures in rats do not cause neuronal injury

M T Acosta  1 , J Munashinge, L Zhang, Daniel A Guerron, Alexander Vortmeyer, W H Theodore
Affiliations

Isolated seizures in rats do not cause neuronal injury

M T Acosta et al. Acta Neurol Scand. 2012 Jan.

Abstract

Background: Previous studies have shown that status epilepticus can lead to neuronal injury. However, the effect of a small number of isolated seizures is uncertain.

Methods: We used structural MRI and neuropathology to study the effects of isolated seizures induced by kainic acid (KA), (RS)-2-amino-3-(3-hydroxy-5-tert-butylisoxazole-4-yl)propanoic acid (ATPA), and α-amino-3-hydroxyl-5-methyl-4-isoxazole-propionate in rats. A group of animals received normal saline. After seizure induction, animals were followed for 12 weeks.

Results: ATPA and KA led to small but significant increases in ADC. There were no changes in T2 signal intensity or hippocampal volume. Blinded pathological examination showed no differences between animals receiving saline or glutamatergic agents.

Conclusion: Our study suggests that isolated seizures cause minimal neuronal injury in rats.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Average T2 variation of left and right hippocampii over 12 weeks in animals (n=4 each) exposed to saline, AMPA, KA, and ATPA. Although individual variations and an age related decrease in T2 were apparent, there were no significant effects of drug on T2 at any time point.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Average Hippocampal ADC measurements over 12 weeks in animals (n=4 each) exposed to saline, AMPA, KA, and ATPA. Similar to the T2 variations, significant ADC variations were not observed over time for any drug.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Hippocampal volume measurements over 12 weeks in animals (n=4 each) exposed to saline, AMPA, KA, and ATPA. There were no significant differences in hippocampal volume attributable to drug over the 12 week observation period.
Figure 4
Figure 4
OX 42 (A) and Nissl Stains (B) showing superficial cortical trauma due to electrode placement in an animal that received saline. 10 × magnification.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Transverse T2 weighted MRI section (A) and hippocampal slice (C) (Nissl Stain 2.5 × magnification) from an animal that received saline. MRI section (B) and hippocampal slice (D) from an animal that received kainic acid and experienced level 3 seizure activity during drug infusion. There were no pathological or MRI effects of convulsants.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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