Pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus results in mossy fiber sprouting and spontaneous seizures in C57BL/6 and CD-1 mice

Several rodent models are available to study the cellular mechanisms associated with the development of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), but few have been successfully transferred to inbred mouse strains commonly used in genetic mutation studies. We examined spontaneous seizure development and correlative axon sprouting in the dentate gyrus of CD-1 and C57BL/6 mice after systemic injection of pilocarpine. Pilocarpine induced seizures and status epilepticus (SE) after systemic injection in both strains, although SE onset latency was greater for C57BL/6 mice. There were also animals of both strains which did not experience SE after pilocarpine treatment. After a period of normal behavior for several days after the pilocarpine treatment, spontaneous tonic-clonic seizures were observed in most CD-1 mice and all C57BL/6 that survived pilocarpine-induced SE. Robust mossy fiber sprouting into the inner molecular layer was observed after 4-8 weeks in mice from both strains which had experienced SE, and cell loss was apparent in the hippocampus. Mossy fiber sprouting and spontaneous seizures were not observed in mice that did not experience a period of SE. These results indicate that pilocarpine induces spontaneous seizures and mossy fiber sprouting in both CD-1 and C57BL/6 mouse strains. Unlike systemic kainic acid treatment, the pilocarpine model offers a potentially useful tool for studying TLE development in genetically modified mice raised on the C57BL/6 background.     

Behavioral and cognitive alterations, spontaneous seizures, and neuropathology developing after a pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus in C57BL/6 mice

Many patients with epilepsy suffer from psychiatric comorbidities including depression, anxiety, psychotic disorders, cognitive, and personality changes, but the mechanisms underlying the association between epilepsy and psychopathology are only incompletely understood. Animal models of epilepsy, such as the pilocarpine model of acquired temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), are useful to study the relationship between epilepsy and behavioral dysfunctions. In the present study, we examined behavioral and cognitive alterations, spontaneous seizures, and neuropathology developing after a pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus in the C57BL/6 (B6) inbred strain of mice, which is commonly used as background strain for genetically modified mice. For this study, we used the same pilocarpine ramping-up dosing protocol and behavioral test battery than in a previous study in NMRI mice, thus allowing direct comparison between these two mouse strains. All B6 mice that survived SE developed epilepsy with spontaneous recurrent seizures. Epileptic B6 mice exhibited significant increases of anxiety-related behavior in the open field and light–dark box, increased locomotor activity in the open field, elevated plus maze, hole board, and novel object exploration tests, and decreased immobility in the forced swimming and tail suspension tests. Furthermore, spatial learning and memory were severely impaired in the Morris water maze, although hippocampal damage was much less severe than previously determined in NMRI mice. B6 mice in which pilocarpine did not induce SE but only single seizures did not exhibit any detectable neurodegeneration, but differed behaviorally from sham controls in several tests of the test battery used. Our data indicate that the pilocarpine model of TLE in B6 mice is ideally suited to study the neurobiological mechanisms underlying the association between seizures, brain damage and psychopathology.     

Recurrent excitation in the dentate gyrus of a murine model of temporal lobe epilepsy

Similar to rats, systemic pilocarpine injection causes status epilepticus (SE) and the eventual development of spontaneous seizures and mossy fiber sprouting in C57BL/6 and CD1 mice, but the physiological correlates of these events have not been identified in mice. Population responses in granule cells of the dentate gyrus were examined in transverse slices of the ventral hippocampus from pilocarpine-treated and untreated mice. In Mg(2+)-free bathing medium containing bicuculline, conditions designed to increase excitability in the slices, electrical stimulation of the hilus resulted in a single population spike in granule cells from control mice and pilocarpine-treated mice that did not experience SE. In SE survivors, similar stimulation resulted in a population spike followed, at a variable latency, by negative DC shifts and repetitive afterdischarges of 3-60 s duration, which were blocked by ionotropic glutamate receptor antagonists. Focal glutamate photostimulation of the granule cell layer at sites distant from the recording pipette resulted in population responses of 1-30 s duration in slices from SE survivors but not other groups. These data support the hypothesis that SE-induced mossy fiber sprouting and synaptic reorganization are relevant characteristics of seizure development in these murine strains, resembling rat models of human temporal lobe epilepsy.     

The polarity and properties of radial glia‐like neural stem cells are altered by seizures with status epilepticus: Study using an improved mouse pilocarpine model of epilepsy

In the adult mouse hippocampus, new neurons are produced by radial glia‐like (RGL) neural stem cells in the subgranular zone, which extend their apical processes toward the molecular layer, and express the astrocyte marker glial fibrillary acidic protein, but not the astrocyte marker S100β. In rodent models of epilepsy, adult hippocampal neurogenesis was reported to be increased after acute and mild seizures, but to be decreased by chronic and severe epilepsy. In the present study, we investigated how the severity of seizures affects neurogenesis and RGL neural stem cells in acute stages of epilepsy, using an improved mouse pilocarpine model in which pilocarpine‐induced hypothermia was prevented by maintaining body temperature, resulting in a high incidence rate of epileptic seizures and low rate of mortality. In mice that experienced seizures without status epilepticus (SE), the number of proliferating progenitors and immature neurons were significantly increased, whereas no changes were observed in RGL cells. In mice that experienced seizures with SE, the number of proliferating progenitors and immature neurons were unchanged, but the number of RGL cells with an apical process was significantly reduced. Furthermore, the processes of the majority of RGL cells extended inversely toward the hilus, and about half of the aberrant RGL cells expressed S100β. These results suggest that seizures with SE lead to changes in the polarity and properties of RGL neural stem cells, which may direct them toward astrocyte differentiation, resulting in the reduction of neural stem cells producing new granule cells. This also suggests the possibility that cell polarity of RGL stem cells is important for maintaining the stemness of adult neural stem cells.     

TRPC6在匹罗卡品致痫大鼠海马苔藓纤维出芽中的作用

目的 观察传统型瞬时受体电位通道6(TRPC6)蛋白在匹罗卡品致痫大鼠海马中的表达变化,探讨其在海马苔藓纤维出芽中的作用.方法 72只SD大鼠随机分为实验组(n=60)和对照组(n=12).实验组采用氯化锂-匹罗卡品腹腔注射法建立颞叶癫痫模型;对照组腹腔注射等量无菌生理盐水.实验组按癫痫持续状态(SE)后1d、7d、15d、30 d和60 d分为5个亚组,每亚组12只大鼠.以上各亚组及对照组再分为2个小组,分别进行Western blot检测TRPC6及突触重建标志蛋白Synaptophysin在海马中的表达和Timm染色观察海马苔藓纤维出芽并评分.结果 实验组TRPC6蛋白表达量在SE后1d达高峰(P＜0.01),其他时间点均显著高于对照组(P＜0.01).Synaptophysin蛋白表达量在SE后7d、15d、30 d和60 d显著增加(7 d:P＜0.05;15 d、30 d、60 d:P＜0.01),30 d达峰值(P＜0.01).实验组大鼠齿状回内分子层在SE后7d出现Timm颗粒,并呈进行性增加.结论 TRPC6可能参与了苔藓纤维出芽这一过程.     

Circuit Mechanisms of Seizures in the Pilocarpine Model of Chronic Epilepsy: Cell Loss and Mossy Fiber Sprouting

We used the pilocarpine model of chronic spontaneous recurrent seizures to evaluate the time course of supragranular dentate sprouting and to assess the relation between several changes that occur in epilep tic tissue with different behavioral manifestations of this experimental model of temporal lobe epilepsy. Pilo carpine-induced status epilepticus (SE) invariably led to cell loss in the hilus of the dentate gyrus (DG) and to spontaneous recurrent seizures. Cell loss was often also noted in the DG and in hippocampal subfields CA1 and CA3. The seizures began to appear at a mean of 15 days after SE induction (silent period), recurred at variable frequencies for each animal, and lasted for as long as the animals were allowed to survive (325 days). The granule cell layer of the DG was dispersed in epileptic animals, and neo-Timm stains showed supra-and intragranular mossy fiber sprouting. Supragranular mossy fiber sprout ing and dentate granule cell dispersion began to appear early after SE (as early as 4 and 9 days, respectively) and reached a plateau by 100 days. Animals with a greater degree of cell loss in hippocampal field CAS showed later onset of chronic epilepsy (r= 0.83, p < 0.0005), suggest ing that CA3 represents one of the routes for seizure spread. These results demonstrate that the pilocarpine model of chronic seizures replicates several of the fea tures of human temporal lobe epilepsy (hippocampal cell loss, suprar and intragranular mossy fiber sprouting, den tate granule cell dispersion, spontaneous recurrent sei zures) and that it may be a useful model for studying this human condition. The results also suggest that even though a certain amount of cell loss in specific areas may be essential for chronic seizures to occur, excessive cell loss may hinder epileptogenesis.     

Effects of herbimycin A in the pilocarpine model of temporal lobe epilepsy

Pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus (SE) causes widespread tyrosine phosphorylation in the brain. It has been postulated that this intracellular signal may mediate potentially epileptogenic changes in the morphology and physiology of particular brain regions, including the hippocampus. The present study evaluated the effects of herbimycin A, a protein tyrosine kinase (PTK) inhibitor, over the acute (during which intense biochemical and electrophysiological activation occurs) and the chronic phase (characterized by spontaneous and recurrent epileptic seizures and the presence of synaptic reorganization, e.g., mossy fiber sprouting) of the pilocarpine model of epilepsy. The administration of a single dose of 1.74 nmol of herbimycin A (i.c.v., 5 microL) 5 min after the onset of SE did not change the acute behavioral manifestation of seizures despite significantly decreasing c-Fos immunoreactivity in different areas of the hippocampus and of the limbic cortex. Herbimycin-treated animals developed spontaneous recurrent seizures, as did control animals, with a similar latency for the appearance of the first seizure and similar seizure frequency. Neo-Timm staining revealed that all animals experiencing SE, regardless of whether or not injected with herbimycin, showed aberrant mossy fiber sprouting in the supragranular region of the dentate gyrus. Herbimycin did not obviously affect neuronal cell death as evaluated in Nissl-stained sections. These results indicate that the PTK blockade achieved with the current dose of herbimycin reduced the acute c-Fos expression but failed to alter the spontaneous seizure frequency or to attenuate the morphological modifications triggered by the SE.     

Localized overexpression of FGF-2 and BDNF in hippocampus reduces mossy fiber sprouting and spontaneous seizures up to 4 weeks after pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus

Purpose: We have recently reported that viral vector–mediated supplementation of fibroblast growth factor‐2 (FGF‐2) and brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in a lesioned, epileptogenic rat hippocampus limits neuronal damage, favors neurogenesis, and reduces spontaneous recurrent seizures. To test if this treatment can also prevent hippocampal circuit reorganization, we examined here its effect on mossy fiber sprouting, the best studied form of axonal plasticity in epilepsy. Methods: A herpes‐based vector expressing FGF‐2 and BDNF was injected into the rat hippocampus 3 days after an epileptogenic insult (pilocarpine‐induced status epilepticus). Continuous video–electroencephalography (EEG) monitoring was initiated 7 days after status epilepticus, and animals were sacrificed at 28 days for analysis of cell loss (measured using NeuN immunofluorescence) and mossy fiber sprouting (measured using dynorphin A immunohistochemistry). Key Findings: The vector expressing FGF‐2 and BDNF decreased both mossy fiber sprouting and the frequency and severity of spontaneous seizures. The effect on sprouting correlated strictly with the cell loss in the terminal fields of physiologic mossy fiber innervation (mossy cells in the dentate gyrus hilus and CA3 pyramidal neurons). Significance: These data suggest that the supplementation of FGF‐2 and BDNF in an epileptogenic hippocampus may prevent epileptogenesis by decreasing neuronal loss and mossy fiber sprouting, that is, reducing some forms of circuit reorganization.     

Overexpression of NPY and Y2 receptors in epileptic brain tissue: an endogenous neuroprotective mechanism in temporal lobe epilepsy?

Recurrent epileptic seizures in the rat enhance the expression of neuropeptide Y (NPY) and its mRNA in various brain areas including the hippocampus, cerebral cortex and the amygdala. In the hippocampus, the most prominent expression of NPY is observed in mossy fibers and in GABAergic interneurons. At the same time, expression of Y2 receptors is also increased whereas Y1 receptors are reduced. Similar changes in Y1 and Y2 receptors were observed in the hippocampus of patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). In contrast to the rat, NPY expression is not enhanced in mossy fibers in TLE. In the same tissue, surviving NPY interneurons show marked axonal sprouting into areas innervated by mossy fibers (dentate hilus, stratum lucidum, inner molecular layer of the dentate gyrus). Stimulation of presynaptic Y2 receptors inhibits glutamate release, and exert an anticonvulsant action in experimental models. Y1 receptors mediate a weak excitatory component of NPY action. These findings suggest that changes in the NPY system induced by seizures represent an endogenous adaptive mechanism aimed at counteracting hyperexcitability underlying epileptic activity. This concept is strongly supported by evidence that genetically modified rats overexpressing the NPY gene are less susceptible to seizures while deletion of NPY or Y2 receptor genes results in increased susceptibility to seizures.     

边缘癫痫实验模型海马内突触体素表达

目的探讨癫痫时突触体素(P^38)在海马表达的时间变化及意义。方法建立匹罗卡品边缘癫痫模型，用图像分析系统测定海马不同时间点P^38免疫反应吸光度值。结果P^38免疫反应性在海马呈现两次高峰：致痫后3～6h在海马门区及CA3区P^38短期升高，30～60dCA3区呈现第2次高峰。在内分子层，从第7天开始直至第60天P^38呈进行性增多，且与Neo—Timm染色结果相平行。结论P^38在海马第2次表达增高，平行于苔藓纤维出芽，与自发性发作形成有关。急性期表达增高则与癫痫持续状态的产生与维持有关。     

Seizure frequency correlates with loss of dentate gyrus GABAergic neurons in a mouse model of temporal lobe epilepsy

Epilepsy occurs in one of 26 people. Temporal lobe epilepsy is common and can be difficult to treat effectively. It can develop after brain injuries that damage the hippocampus. Multiple pathophysiological mechanisms involving the hippocampal dentate gyrus have been proposed. This study evaluated a mouse model of temporal lobe epilepsy to test which pathological changes in the dentate gyrus correlate with seizure frequency and help prioritize potential mechanisms for further study. FVB mice (n = 127) that had experienced status epilepticus after systemic treatment with pilocarpine 31–61 days earlier were video‐monitored for spontaneous, convulsive seizures 9 hr/day every day for 24–36 days. Over 4,060 seizures were observed. Seizure frequency ranged from an average of one every 3.6 days to one every 2.1 hr. Hippocampal sections were processed for Nissl stain, Prox1‐immunocytochemistry, GluR2‐immunocytochemistry, Timm stain, glial fibrillary acidic protein‐immunocytochemistry, glutamic acid decarboxylase in situ hybridization, and parvalbumin‐immunocytochemistry. Stereological methods were used to measure hilar ectopic granule cells, mossy cells, mossy fiber sprouting, astrogliosis, and GABAergic interneurons. Seizure frequency was not significantly correlated with the generation of hilar ectopic granule cells, the number of mossy cells, the extent of mossy fiber sprouting, the extent of astrogliosis, or the number of GABAergic interneurons in the molecular layer or hilus. Seizure frequency significantly correlated with the loss of GABAergic interneurons in or adjacent to the granule cell layer, but not with the loss of parvalbumin‐positive interneurons. These findings prioritize the loss of granule cell layer interneurons for further testing as a potential cause of temporal lobe epilepsy.     

匹罗卡品致疒间大鼠海马GAP-43与TrkB基因表达及其意义

目的探讨生长相关蛋白(GAP-43)和脑源性神经营养因子(BDNF)受体TrkB基因在匹罗卡品致疒间大鼠海马的表达及其意义.方法应用原位杂交组织化学方法研究匹罗卡品(PILO)致疒间大鼠海马GAP-43及TrkB mRNA表达的变化.结果匹罗卡品致癫疒间持续状态后3～6小时,海马齿状回颗粒细胞、CA3区及CA1区锥体细胞层TrkB mRNA表达显著高于对照组(P<0.01或0.05);在慢性期第7～30天,呈现第2次表达增强.致疒间后6～12小时,正常状态下并不表达GAP-43的大鼠海马颗粒细胞其GAP-43 mRNA表达较对照组显著增高(P<0.01),24小时～7天表达减少,在癫疒间慢性期表达再次高于对照组.结论 GAP-43及TrkB是颞叶癫疒间病理基础--海马苔藓纤维出芽的重要分子机制;BDNF对苔藓纤维的作用部分是通过GAP-43实现的.     

Degeneration and proliferation of astrocytes in the mouse dentate gyrus after pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus

Astrocytes are relatively resistant to injury compared to neurons and oligodendrocytes. Here, we report transient region-specific loss of astrocytes in mice early after pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus (SE). In the dentate hilus, immunoreactivity for glial acidic fibrillary protein (GFAP) was decreased, and the number of healthy appearing GFAP- or S100beta-positive cells was significantly reduced (> or =65%) 1 and 3 days after pilocarpine-induced SE. Many remaining GFAP-positive cells were shrunken, and 1 day after SE electron microscopy revealed numerous electron-dense degenerating astrocyte processes and degenerating glial somata in the hilus. Degeneration of GFAP-expressing cells may be linked to hilar neuronal death, because we did not observe loss of astrocytes after kainate-induced SE, after which hilar neurons remained intact. Ten days after SE, hilar GFAP immunoreactivity had returned, partially from GFAP-positive cells in the hilus. Unlike control mice, many GFAP-positive hilar processes originated from cell bodies located in the subgranular zone (SGZ). To investigate whether proliferation contributes to hilar repopulation, we injected 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine (BrdU) 3 days after SE. Five hours later and up to 31 days after SE, many BrdU/GFAP colabeled cells were found in the hilus and the SGZ, some with hilar processes, indicating that proliferation in both areas contributes to generation of hilar astrocytes and astrocyte processes. In contrast to pilocarpine-induced SE in mice, astrocyte degeneration was not found after pilocarpine-induced SE in rats. These findings demonstrate astrocyte degeneration in the mouse dentate hilus specifically in the mouse pilocarpine epilepsy model, followed by astrogenesis leading to hilar repopulation.     

Generation and characterization of pilocarpine-sensitive C57BL/6 mice as a model of temporal lobe epilepsy

C57BL/6 (B6) is the most widely used inbred mouse strain, but its use in epilepsy research is compromised by low sensitivity to various convulsants, including pilocarpine. We recently identified a subline of B6NCrl mice in a barrier (#8) of a German vendor (Charles River) that was much more sensitive to status epilepticus (SE) induction than B6NCrl mice from four other barriers of the same vendor and other B6 substrains. Breeding experiments indicated that the observed differences have a genetic basis, thus offering a unique opportunity to identify the genes and pathways involved and contributing to a better understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms of seizure susceptibility. Since the pilocarpine-sensitive B6 subline (B6NCrl#8) is not further available from the breeder, we decided to generate a new highly pilocarpine-sensitive B6NCrl subline by crossing female B6NCrl#8 mice with male F1 hybrids. Further sister-brother mating of the resulting F2 generation generated a highly susceptible F3 generation. Similar to B6NCrl#8 mice, mice from the F3 generation were significantly more susceptible to SE induction than any other B6 substrain, including B6J (JAX) mice, which were particularly insensitive to seizure induction. In contrast to the marked inter-subline differences in susceptibility to induction of SE, B6 sublines did not differ in the long-term consequences of SE, i.e., development of spontaneous seizures and neurodegeneration in the hippocampus, although hippocampal damage was much less severe than previously reported for other mouse strains. We have started to search for genetic loci underlying the high seizure susceptibility of B6NCrl#8 and filial generations obtained by cross-breeding with this B6 subline. Further characterization of the genetic variations underlying high susceptibility to convulsants such as pilocarpine will facilitate our understanding of the pathomechanisms involved in the evolution of single seizures to a self-sustained SE and provide new opportunities for interventions.     

One hour of pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus is sufficient to develop chronic epilepsy in mice, and is associated with mossy fiber sprouting but not neuronal death

Determining the minimal duration of status epilepticus (SE) that leads to the development of subsequent spontaneous seizures (i.e., epilepsy) is important, because it provides a critical time-window for seizure intervention and epilepsy prevention. In the present study, male ICR (Imprinting Control Region) mice were injected with pilocarpine to induce acute seizures. SE was terminated by diazepam at 10 min, 30 min, 1 h, 2 h and 4 h after seizure onset. Spontaneous seizures occurred in the 1, 2 and 4 h SE groups, and the seizure frequency increased with the prolongation of SE. Similarly, the Morris water maze revealed that the escape latency was significantly increased and the number of target quadrant crossings was markedly decreased in the 1, 2 and 4 h SE groups. Robust mossy fiber sprouting was observed in these groups, but not in the 10 or 30 min group. In contrast, Fluoro-Jade B staining revealed significant cell death only in the 4 h SE group. The incidence and frequency of spontaneous seizures were correlated with Timm score (P = 0.004) and escape latency (P = 0.004). These data suggest that SE longer than one hour results in spontaneous motor seizures and memory deficits, and spontaneous seizures are likely associated with robust mossy fiber sprouting but not neuronal death.     

匹罗卡品癫痫模型中突触素Ⅰ的表达及苔藓纤维出芽的动态变化

目的探讨癫痫发生过程中突触素Ⅰ(SYNⅠ)在海马和齿状回的表达及齿状回苔藓纤维出芽的动态变化。方法建立匹罗卡品癫痫持续状态模型,用图像分析系统测定海马和齿状回不同时点SYNⅠ免疫反应吸光度值．Neo-timms’染色观察齿状回苔藓出芽的演变。结果SYNⅠ在海马和齿状回的表达于癫痫状态后2d、7d出现降低,14d开始升高,30d、60d表达明显增高；齿状回内分子层于14d开始出现苔藓纤维出芽,大鼠在同期开始出现自发发作。结论在癫痫状态后2d即出现了突触可塑性的变化,14d后由于神经轴突的再生,齿状回内分子层出现苔藓纤维出芽,形成了兴奋性的环路,可能是癫痫反复自发发作的病理基础,SYNⅠ及苔藓纤维出芽较好的反应了神经可塑性的变化。     

Upregulated TWIK‐related acid‐sensitive K+ channel‐2 in neurons and perivascular astrocytes in the hippocampus of experimental temporal lobe epilepsy

Purpose: To identify the modulation of Tandem of P‐domains in a weak inwardly rectifying K⁺ channel (TWIK)–related acid‐sensitive K⁺ (TASK)‐2 channel expressions in epilepsy, we conducted a comparative analysis of TASK‐2 channel immunoreactivity in the hippocampus of a pilocarpine‐induced rat epilepsy model. Methods: We performed and immunohistochemical study for TASK‐2 and double immunofluorescent staining for TASK‐2 and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) in the rat hippocampus of pilocarpine‐induced epilepsy models. Results: In control animals, TASK‐2 immunoreactivity was strongly detected in CA1–3 pyramidal layers and dentate granule cell layer. After status epilepticus (SE), TASK‐2 immunoreactivity was increased in dentate granule cell layer and CA3 pyramidal cell layer, whereas its immunoreactivity was reduced in CA1 pyramidal cell layer. In addition, TASK‐2 immunoreactivity is gradually increased in perivascular regions following SE. Double immunofluorescent study revealed that the enhancement of TASK‐2 immunoreactivity in perivascular regions is caused by increase in the number of TASK‐2 immunoreactive endfeet of perivascular astrocytes. Discussion: Our findings suggest that elevated TASK‐2 immunoreactivity in neurons may contribute to rapid adaptive responses (presumably for extracellular alkalinization), which result in hyperpolarization and regulate seizure activity. In contrast, upregulated TASK‐2 immunoreactivity in perivascular regions may be involved in abnormalities of blood flow regulation or brain‐blood barrier impairment. These changes may contribute to acquisition of the properties of the epileptic hippocampus.     

The combination of topiramate and diazepam is partially neuroprotective in the hippocampus but not antiepileptogenic in the lithium-pilocarpine model of temporal lobe epilepsy

Lithium-pilocarpine induces status epilepticus (SE), leading to extensive damage and spontaneous recurrent seizures (SRS). Neuroprotective and antiepileptogenic effects of topiramate (TPM) associated with diazepam (DZP) were investigated in this model. SE was induced by LiCl and pilocarpine. TPM (10, 30 or 60 mg/kg) was injected at the onset of SE and 10h later and DZP (2.5 and 1.25mg/kg) at 2 and 10h after SE. TPM treatment was continued twice daily for 6 days. Other rats received two injections of DZP on the day of SE. Cell counting was performed on thionine-stained sections 14 days after SE and after 2 months of epilepsy. Occurrence and frequency of SRS were video-recorded. The MRI T2-weighted signal was quantified in hippocampus and ventral cortices. DZP-TPM treatment induced partial neuroprotection in CA1 and hilus, and tended to increase the percentage of rats with protected neurons in layer III/IV of the ventral entorhinal cortex. The latency to and frequency of SRS were not modified by DZP-TPM. T2-weighted signal was decreased in hippocampus 3 days after SE at all TPM doses and in ventral hippocampus after epilepsy onset. In conclusion, although DZP-TPM treatment was able to partially protect two areas critical for epileptogenesis, the hippocampus and ventral entorhinal cortex, it was not sufficient to prevent epileptogenesis.     

Remodeling Dendritic Spines of Dentate Granule Cells in Temporal Lobe Epilepsy Patients and the Rat Pilocarpine Model

Summary: Purpose : To study when dendritic alteration can occur in the epileptic hippocampus and how it is influenced by epileptic axonal reorganization.
Methods : Human specimens and the rat pilocarpine model were used. Dentate granule cells (DGCs) were visualized by intracellular biocytin injection for spine count.
Results : In the rat pilocarpine model, dendrites of DGCs revealed a generalized spine loss immediately after the acute status epilepticus induced by pilocarpine. However, this generalized damage was transient and was followed by recovery and plastic changes in spine shape and density, which occurred 15 to 35 days after the initial acute status, i.e., during the period of establishing a chronic phase of this model with the induction of spontaneous seizures. In human epileptic hippocampi, spine density was significantly higher when DGCs generated aberrant mossy fiber collaterals. This was particularly so in the proximal dendrite of DGCs, where the aberrant collaterals were densely localized. These findings suggest that initial acute seizures do not cause permanent damage in dendrites and spines of DGCs and that dendritic spines of epileptic neurons can respond to changes in the local cellular environment, including newly formed afferents, in a plastic manner.
Conclusion : Dendritic spines are dynamically maintained in chronic epilepsy during the course of establishment and maintenance of spontaneous seizures. Local dendritic spine alteration, detected later in the chronic phase of epilepsy, must have a separate cause from initial acute insults.