title: Attention and executive functions in a rat model of chronic epilepsy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Temporal lobe epilepsy is a relatively frequent, invalidating, and often refractory neurologic disorder. It is associated with cognitive impairments that affect memory and executive functions. In the rat lithium-pilocarpine temporal lobe epilepsy model, memory impairment and anxiety disorder are classically reported. Here we evaluated sustained visual attention in this model of epilepsy, a function not frequently explored.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty-five Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to lithium-pilocarpine status epilepticus. Twenty of them received a carisbamate treatment for 7 days, starting 1 h after status epilepticus onset. Twelve controls received lithium and saline. Five months later, attention was assessed in the five-choice serial reaction time task, a task that tests visual attention and inhibitory control (impulsivity/compulsivity). Neuronal counting was performed in brain regions of interest to the functions studied (hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, nucleus basalis magnocellularis, and pedunculopontine tegmental nucleus).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Lithium-pilocarpine rats developed motor seizures. When they were able to learn the task, they exhibited attention impairment and a tendency toward impulsivity and compulsivity. These disturbances occurred in the absence of neuronal loss in structures classically related to attentional performance, although they seemed to better correlate with neuronal loss in hippocampus. Globally, rats that received carisbamate and developed motor seizures were as impaired as untreated rats, whereas those that did not develop overt motor seizures performed like controls, despite evidence for hippocampal damage.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study shows that attention deficits reported by patients with temporal lobe epilepsy can be observed in the lithium-pilocarpine model. Carisbamate prevents the occurrence of motor seizures, attention impairment, impulsivity, and compulsivity in a subpopulation of neuroprotected rats.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cognitive and Adaptive Neuroscience (LNCA), Faculty of Psychology, UMR 7364 University of Strasbourg - CNRS, Strasbourg, France.|Faculty of Medicine, INSERM U 666, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Jean-Baptiste
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Faure
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cognitive and Adaptive Neuroscience (LNCA), Faculty of Psychology, UMR 7364 University of Strasbourg - CNRS, Strasbourg, France.|Faculty of Medicine, INSERM U 666, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: José E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Marques-Carneiro
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cognitive and Adaptive Neuroscience (LNCA), Faculty of Psychology, UMR 7364 University of Strasbourg - CNRS, Strasbourg, France.|Faculty of Medicine, INSERM U 666, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Gladys
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Akimana
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cognitive and Adaptive Neuroscience (LNCA), Faculty of Psychology, UMR 7364 University of Strasbourg - CNRS, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Brigitte
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Cosquer
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, INSERM U 666, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Arielle
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ferrandon
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cognitive and Adaptive Neuroscience (LNCA), Faculty of Psychology, UMR 7364 University of Strasbourg - CNRS, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Karine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Herbeaux
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, INSERM U 666, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Estelle
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Koning
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cognitive and Adaptive Neuroscience (LNCA), Faculty of Psychology, UMR 7364 University of Strasbourg - CNRS, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Barbelivien
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, INSERM U 666, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Astrid
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nehlig
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cognitive and Adaptive Neuroscience (LNCA), Faculty of Psychology, UMR 7364 University of Strasbourg - CNRS, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Jean-Christophe
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Cassel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000494:pharmacology; D001288:Attention / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects / Q000503:physiopathology; D001931:Brain Mapping; D002219:Carbamates / Q000494:pharmacology; D002452:Cell Count; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D017029:Epilepsy, Complex Partial / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D004833:Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D056344:Executive Function / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D007266:Inhibition, Psychological; D016651:Lithium Carbonate; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D010862:Pilocarpine; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D012691:Serial Learning / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D013226:Status Epilepticus / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants; D002219:Carbamates; C518914:S-2-O-carbamoyl-1-o-chlorophenyl-ethanol; D010862:Pilocarpine; D016651:Lithium Carbonate
keywords: 5-CSRTT; Attention; Impulsivity/compulsivity; Lithium-pilocarpine; Temporal lobe epilepsy