Inhibiting effect of vagal nerve stimulation to seizures in epileptic process of rats.
OBJECTIVE
Our previous work suggested that sensitivity of hippocampal neurons is changed in process of epileptic activities, and closely parallel to the dynamic characteristic of epileptic activity of the neurons. This study investigated the sensitivity of epileptic brain to vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) in epileptic process.


METHODS
Epileptic model was evoked by penicillin. Left vagal nerves were stimulated to inhibit the seizures induced by penicillin. The electrocorticography (ECoG) and electromyography (EMG) were recorded to analyze inhibiting effect of VNS in epileptic process.


RESULTS
It was found that VNS could inhibit the seizures caused by penicillin, and the inhibiting effect of VNS to seizures increased as the vagal nerve stimulating time prolonged. It was also found that the inhibiting effect of VNS to seizures decreased in epileptic process.


CONCLUSIONS
The results suggested that the sensitivity of epileptic brain to VNS was different in epileptic process. The inhibiting effect of VNS to seizure decreased as the development of seizures.
Department of Neurology, Guangzhou Military General Hospital, Guangzhou 510010, China. neuroyhj@163.com
Hong-Jun
HJ
Yang
Kai-Run
KR
Peng
San-Jue
SJ
Hu
Yan
Y
Liu
D000200:Action Potentials / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004576:Electromyography; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000517:prevention & control; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D009044:Motor Cortex / Q000187:drug effects / Q000503:physiopathology; D009433:Neural Inhibition / Q000502:physiology*; D017711:Nonlinear Dynamics; D010296:Parietal Lobe / Q000503:physiopathology; D010406:Penicillins; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012640:Seizures / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014630:Vagus Nerve / Q000502:physiology*
D010406:Penicillins