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. 2018 Mar;15(3):2327-2332.
doi: 10.3892/etm.2018.5698. Epub 2018 Jan 4.

Effects of carbamazepine combined with vitamin B12 on levels of plasma homocysteine, hs-CRP and TNF-α in patients with epilepsy

Tianchi Zhou  1 , Nuan Wang  2 , Lei Xu  3 , Hongli Huang  2 , Chunyu Yu  2 , Hao Zhou  2
Affiliations

Effects of carbamazepine combined with vitamin B12 on levels of plasma homocysteine, hs-CRP and TNF-α in patients with epilepsy

Tianchi Zhou et al. Exp Ther Med. 2018 Mar.

Abstract

The efficacy of carbamazepine combined with vitamin B12 in epilepsy treatment by comparing levels of plasma homocysteine (Hcy), serum TNF-α and hs-CRP in patients with epilepsy before and after treatment was investigated. Fifty-eight patients with epilepsy who were admitted and received treatment in The First People's Hospital of Xuzhou were recruited as subjects, and fifty-eight healthy volunteers were recruited as the control group. Patients were treated with carbamazepine combined with vitamin B12 for a period of three months. The mRNA and protein levels of TNF-α and hs-CRP in serum were measured before and after treatment using semi-quantitative RT-PCR and western blotting, respectively. The plasma Hcy levels were measured as well. Within one year after the 3-month treatment, the frequency and duration of seizure were tracked. After treatment with carbamazepine combined with vitamin B12 for patients with epilepsy, the Hcy level was significantly higher than that before treatment and that in the control group (P<0.01). The mRNA and protein levels of TNF-α and hs-CRP in serum were significantly higher in patients than that in healthy people (P<0.01). After treatment these levels were reduced (P<0.01), but still higher than those in healthy people (P<0.05, P<0.01). After treatment, the frequency and duration of seizures were all reduced (P<0.05, P<0.01). The results suggested that carbamazepine combined with vitamin B12 was effective in treatment of epilepsy by reducing levels of TNF-α and hs-CRP in the serum, but had a risk of increasing the Hcy level.

Keywords: TNF-α; carbamazepine; epilepsy; homocysteine.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Plasma Hcy levels of the control group and patients with epilepsy before and after treatment. **P<0.01, compared with the control group; ##P<0.01, compared with patients before treatment.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Serum levels of TNF-α and hs-CRP mRNA. (A) Gel electrophoresis map; (B and C) bar graphs of TNF-α and hs-CRP mRNA expression levels, respectively (*P<0.05, **P<0.01, ##P<0.01).
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Levels of TNF-α (A) and hs-CRP (B) in serum measured by ELISA *P<0.05, **P<0.01, ##P<0.01.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Levels of TNF-α and hs-CRP protein in serum measured by western blotting (A). (B and C) Bar graphs of TNF-α and hs-CRP protein expression levels, respectively (*P<0.05, **P<0.01, ##P<0.01).
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Seizure frequency and duration in patients with epilepsy. (A) Seizure frequency; (B) seizure duration (*P<0.05, **P<0.01).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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