Spreading depression in the striatum and optic lobes of the chicken

Pentylenetetrazol-induced seizures in pigeons and the effects of ethosuximide thereon

Previous research has shown that ethosuximide in high enough doses disrupts operant responding in pigeons. Whether or not these same doses protect against seizure activity in this species has not been determined. In the present study a system for scoring pentylenetetrazol-induced seizures in pigeons was developed and the effects of ethosuximide on such seizures were evaluated. Pentylenetetrazol at 15, 27 and 47 mg/kg reliably induced seizures in Experiment 1. In Experiment 2 six doses of ethosuximide were tested for their seizure-controlling effectiveness. Doses of 20, 40, 80, 160 and 320 mg/kg ethosuximide had little effect on seizures induced by 27 mg/kg pentylenetetrazol; 640 mg/kg significantly reduced but did not completely eliminate seizures. This dose (640 mg/kg) is several times higher than the doses found to disrupt operant behavior in our previous studies.

Behavioral and electroencephalographic manifestations of avian epilepsy: a review of the literature

Recently, electrophysiological studies on sleep and wakefulness in birds have yielded useful results. Furthermore, recent evidence obtained in behavioral and electroencephalographical investigations of epileptic birds, induced neuropharmacologically or genetically, have led to recognition of the fact that epileptic seizures are present in aves, and that these seizures reveal many similarities between mammalian and avian epilepsy. While the investigation of birds is of obvrious value for demonstrating the neuropharmacological interrelationship with the brain, comparison of the correlation between abnormal behavior and the electroencephalogram in birds and higher vertebrates requires further research. In the present paper, normal and abnormal electroencephalographic activity associated with behavior of birds is reviewed. It was concluded that birds provide a useful preparation for studying experimental epilepsy.