[Understanding the pathophysiology of epilepsy in an animal model: pentylenetetrazole induces activation but not death of neurons of the medial extended amygdala].
BACKGROUND
since middle of the 20th century the importance of amygdala in epilepsy it has suggested, although the basic mechanisms of this participation are still unknown. This ignorance increases when the different subdivisions of amygdala are considered, especially the medial amygdala. In this work we assess the involvement of the medial extended amygdala in an animal model of epilepsy and the consequences of its application in this brain structure.


METHODS
forty eight adult Wistar male rats were used, of which 24 of them received i.p. injections of pentylenetetrazole, and 24 (controls) were injected with saline. After 2, 6, 12 and 24 h survival, animals were fixed; the brains were sectioned serially and stained for fos (immunochemistry) and for neuronal death with the A-Cu-Ag technique. Data were analysed using two-way ANOVA followed by the Fisher post hoc test.


RESULTS
very few or no fos-immunoreactive neurons were seen in control animals. In experimental animals, fos was rapidly induced in structures of medial extended amygdala with peak levels at 2 h. Marked fos immunoreactivity persisted up to 12 h followed by a gradual return to baseline at 24 h. However, status epilepticus did not induced neuronal death.


CONCLUSIONS
these results show involvement of medial extended amygdala in epileptic mechanisms with an inhibitory component. However, neuronal death is not a consequence of status epilepticus-induced by pentylentetrazole.
Pereno
G
G
Cátedra de Neurofisiología y Psicofisiología, Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Argentina. gpereno@psyche.unc.edu.ar
Beltramino
C
C
D000679:Amygdala / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D003292:Convulsants / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009410:Nerve Degeneration / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D010433:Pentylenetetrazole / Q000494:pharmacology*; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
D003292:Convulsants; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos; D010433:Pentylenetetrazole