title: Sex difference in susceptibility to picrotoxin-induced seizures in rats following octreotide.
abstract: It was previously reported that females with proestrous are more susceptible to picrotoxin-induced epileptic seizures than males, provided that the estrous cycle is taken into consideration (Tan & Tan, 2001). The sex difference in susceptibility to picrotoxin-induced seizures was reconsidered in the present study using rats with a previous octreotide (a stable somatostatin analogue) injection, as somatostatin is known to be involved in epileptic phenomena. Contrary to rats without octreotide, males were more susceptible to picrotoxin-induced seizures than females. Statistical analysis indicated that only males showed decreased latencies to seizures and increased seizure frequencies following octreotide; females were not affected by this experimental procedure. It was suggested that as a GABA antagonist, somatostatin may contribute to the occurrence of epileptic discharges in nervous system, creating a sex difference to epileptic seizures. These results may have implications for understanding the epileptic mechanisms, with possible therapeutic consequences.
authors.affiliation: BlackSea Technical University Medical School, Department of Neurology Trabzon, Turkey.
authors.forename: Meliha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.forename: Nuri Ihsan
authors.initials: NI
authors.lastname: Kalyoncu
authors.forename: Uner
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Tan
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D030762:Estrous Cycle; D005260:Female; D006728:Hormones / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D015282:Octreotide / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010852:Picrotoxin; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012640:Seizures / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000523:psychology; D012737:Sex Factors; D013004:Somatostatin / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D006728:Hormones; D015282:Octreotide; D010852:Picrotoxin; D013004:Somatostatin