Summary:Purpose: To understand the role of nitric oxide (NO) in the regulation of seizures, we measured the extracellular levels of the NO metabolites nitrite and nitrate as indices of NO generation in the parietal cortex, hippocampus, and temporal cortex of EL mice. Furthermore, alterations of neuronal, endothelial, and inducible nitric oxide synthetase (nNOS, eNOS, and iNOS, respectively) were observed to correlate them with epileptogenesis.Methods: EL mice of 20 weeks and 30 weeks of age (before and after the establishment of epileptogenesis, respectively) were used. Nitrite was quantified using the specific absorbancy of diazo dye. NOS isoenzymes (nNOS, iNOS, and eNOS) were also investigated in the hippocampus during development until mice were 30 weeks old. Samples (total protein, 8.33 to 8.43 Fg) were separated by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide geI electrophoresis and identified by immunoblotting.Results: EL mice that experienced repetitive seizures showed a remarkable increase in nitrite in the hippocampus at 30 weeks of age compared with EL mice that had no experience of seizures. nNOS and iNOS were major and minor components, respectively, and both increased in parallel with the development of epileptogenesis. eNOS was not detectable.Conclusions: Excess iNOS (and subsequent increase in harmful NO) and deficient eNOS (and subsequent decrease in NO identified as an endothelium-derived relaxing factor) may work together to form a focus complex. Key Words: Epileptic mutant-EL mouse-Nitric oxide (NO)-Nitric oxide synthetase (NOS)-Abnormal plasticity-Epileptogenesis.The EL mouse is an inbred mutant strain that has been used as an animal model of secondarily generalized seizures (1,2). Several lines of evidence indicate that seizure discharges are initiated in the parietal area and then generalized through the hippocampus (3). These findings have been substantiated by histochemical and biochemical analyses of glucose utilization (4) and inhibitory neurotransmissions by aminobutyric acid (5). The developmental formation of the focus complex, which consists mainly of the parietal cortex and the hippocampus, has been hypothesized to be key to epileptogenesis in EL mice.In our recent studies, allopurinol, a xanthine oxidase inhibitor, exerted an antiepileptic action on EL mice (6), and the drug ameliorated abnormalities in the activities of the free radical scavenger superoxide dismutase isoenzymes, which are present in the hippocampus (7). Furthermore, DNA fragmentation was found in the hippocampal CA1 region and the parietal cortex in EL mice, presumably as a consequence of the production of free radicals attributable to decreased Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase (7). Nitric oxide (NO) has been identified as a source of free radical oxidants with special relevance to pathological conditions in the brain, and reactive nitrogen intermediates could damage DNA as an important target (8). In addition, NO, identified as an endothelium-derived relaxing factor (9), is a potent vasodilator that regulates cerebral blo...

Summary:Purpose: In EL mice, ictogenesis is established at age ∼10 weeks, whereas epileptogenesis is induced through an experience of repetitive seizures during development. An "abnormal neural plasticity" has been suggested to be involved in these pathologic processes. It also is known that two isoforms of nitric oxide (NO) synthetase (nNOS and eNOS) are essential for the long-term potentiation (LTP), a plastic response of neurons. It appears, therefore, that these NO synthetases might play a major role in the establishment of abnormal neural plasticity. The purpose of the present study was to investigate ictogenesis and epileptogenesis by observing alterations of NO synthetases as well as immediate early gene (IEG) expressions and ␥-aminobutyric acid (GABA) distributions in the brain during development and with respect to seizure history.Methods: IEG (c-fos and zif) expression in EL mice were analyzed by in situ hybridization with 35S. Distribution of GABA concentrations and glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) activities in the parietal cortex of EL mice was quantitatively determined using ultramicroenzymatic chemistry (Lowry, 1978). Three isoforms of NOS were assayed by immunoblotting analysis for hippocampal tissues of EL mice and their control animals, DDY mice. DNA fragmentation was detected with the TUNEL method.Results: In EL mouse brains, IEG expression was related to the seizure history, seizure threshold, and age. Even in the interictal period, the animals expressed IEG continuously when their seizure thresholds were very low. Among various IEG expression sites in the brain, hippocampal CA1 was the most remarkable. These IEG expression sites were almost identical to the brain regions of EL mice where GABA concentrations and GAD activities were altered. Unexpectedly, the eNOS content of EL was very small, although eNOS appears to be responsible for NO that mediates an increase in local cerebral blood flow during focal seizures. nNOS, iNOS, and to a lesser extent, eNOS were essential to establish both ictogenicity and epileptogenicity. DNA fragmentation was observed in the hippocampus of EL mice in the interictal period.Conclusions: Continuous IEG expression and abnormal GABAergic function are involved in the epileptogenesis of EL mice. Transiently expressed IEG, on the other hand, is associated with the ictogenesis. It is conceivable that an excess amount of iNOS (and subsequent increase in harmful antimicrobial NO) and a lesser amount of eNOS (and subsequent decrease in NO or endothelium-derived relaxing factor, EDRF) may work together to contribute to a focus complex and ictogenesis. Drugs that suppress iNOS and/or potentiate eNOS may be promising candidates for a new type of antiepileptic agent. Key Words: Ictogenesis-Epileptogenesis-EL mouseAbnormal plasticity-Focus complex ICTOGENESIS AND EPILEPTOGENESIS IN EL MICE BRAIN RELATED TO IMMEDIATE EARLY GENE EXPRESSIONRapid genomic responses to neural stimulation may play a critical role in long-term synaptic plasticity. Recent works have strengthened th...

This monograph summarizes one of the sessions of the XI Workshop on Neurobiology of Epilepsy (WONOEP), and provides a critical review of the current state of the field. Speakers and discussants focused on several broad topics: (1) The co-existence of inflammatory processes encompassing several distinct signal-transduction pathways with the epileptogenic process; (2) evidence for the contribution of specific inflammatory molecules and processes to the onset and progression of epilepsy, as well as to epilepsy-related morbidities including depression; (3) the complexity and intricate cross-talk of the pathways involved in inflammation, and the discrete, often opposite roles of a given mediator in neurons vs other cell types. These complexities highlight the challenges confronting the field as it aims to define inflammatory molecules as promising targets for epilepsy prevention and treatment.

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Summary: Purpose:We recently observed inducible nitric oxide synthetase (iNOS) expression and decreased Cu, Znsuperoxide dismutase (Cu, Zn-SOD) activities in the hippocampus of epileptic mutant EL mice at the age of 30 weeks. In addition, the immediate early gene (IEG) c-fos is unusually expressed in the interictal period, suggesting activation of protein cascades associated with the epileptogenesis. Furthermore, DNA fragmentation has been detected preferentially in the hippocampus CA1 and the parietal cortex of EL mouse brain. It remains to be seen, however, how these abnormalities are related to the DNA fragmentation, and whether neuronal cell loss is involved. The present study was designed to address these issues.Methods: NOS isoenzymes, pro-(Bax) and antiapoptotic factors (Bcl-2, Bcl-XL), and neurotrophic factors (brain-derived neurotrophic factor, BDNF; neurotrophin-3, NT-3; fibroblast growth factor-2, FGF-2) were determined by immunoblotting in the EL mouse brain at various developmental stages. Hematoxylin-eosin staining was applied to the formalin-fixed brains to examine the cell loss in the tissue. IEG expression in the interictal period was analyzed by in situ hybridization by using the 35 S x-ray emulsion method. Results: nNOS was the major component of NOS in the hippocampus of either EL or control DDY mice. In EL mice, however, iNOS was detectable at the age of 10 weeks, at which the animals usually experience the first seizures. eNOS, which appears in DDY brain, could scarcely be identified. Even in the interictal period, EL mice expressed c-fos continuously, preferentially in the parietal cortex and hippocampal CA1. In DDY mice, very low steady-state levels of Bcl-2 and Bax remained constant throughout development. In EL mice, these Bcl-2 and Bax levels were increased even before experiencing frequent seizures. BDNF in EL mice markedly increased temporarily during ictogenesis and epileptogenesis in their early periods. Unexpectedly, no cell loss was found in the hippocampus.Conclusions: DNA fragmentation without cell loss found in EL mouse brains appears to result from initial activation and later inactivation of the apoptotic process. Neurotrophic factors may play a role in the ictogenesis and the epileptogenesis during the early development. These gene expressions closely related to the periods critical for ictogenesis and epileptogenesis may be of particular importance in the development of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) with novel mechanisms. Key Words: Epileptic mutant-EL mouse-Ictogenesis-Epileptogenesis-c-fos-DNA fragmentation-Bcl-2-Bcl-XL-Bax-BDNF-NT-3-FGF-2-Abnormal plasticity.EL mouse is an inbred mutant strain that has been used as an animal model of secondarily generalized seizures (1,2). Several lines of evidence indicate that seizure discharges are initiated in the parietal cortex and then generalized through the hippocampus (3). These findings have been substantiated by the histochemical and biochemical analyses of glucose utilization (4) and inhibitory neurotransmissions by γ -aminobu...

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