Effects of GABA-ergic agents on spontaneous non-convulsive epilepsy, EEG and behaviour, in the WAG/RIJ inbred strain of rats.
The effects of GABAergic agents on non-convulsive epilepsy were studied by intracerebroventricular injections of muscimol and bicuculline in WAG/Rij rats. The WAG/Rij rat strain is recognized as an animal model for human absence epilepsy. EEG registrations and behavioural observations showed that muscimol dose-dependently increased the non-convulsive absence epilepsy. Besides this, it induced EEG spikes and body twitches. Bicuculline induced spikes and body twitches as well but decreased the non-convulsive epilepsy. All effects of muscimol can be blocked by bicuculline and vice versa, which suggests that the observed effects are genuine GABAA effects. These results implicate that non-convulsive epilepsy can be caused by a GABAergic hyperfunction.
Peeters
B W
BW
Department of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
van Rijn
C M
CM
Vossen
J M
JM
Coenen
A M
AM
D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects*; D001640:Bicuculline / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D007276:Injections, Intraventricular; D008297:Male; D009118:Muscimol / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid / Q000502:physiology*
D009118:Muscimol; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid; D001640:Bicuculline