To evaluate the anti-kindling effect of allopregnanolone alone and its interaction with sodium valporate in pentylenetetrazole induced kindling model

Ceftriaxone and selenium mitigate seizures and neuronal injury in pentylenetetrazole-kindled rats: Oxidative stress and inflammatory pathway

Epilepsy is one of the most serious worldwide neurological disorders that lead to the cognitive-psychosocial insults in recurrent seizures. About one third of the patients are drug-resistant, so innovative drugs are needed to manage seizures to improve the quality of life. Ceftriaxone is a cephalosporin antibiotic that increases the expression of glutamate transporters-1 and improves the neurobehavioral effects caused by increased glutamate level in the CNS. Selenium is well known antioxidant. The present study aimed to investigate ceftriaxone and selenium therapeutic effects against epilepsy in rats. Epilepsy was induced by PTZ given at a dose (50 mg/kg I.P) on alternative days for 13 days. Eighty rats were randomly divided into 8 groups: Group1-2; normal and vehicle control, Group 3; PTZ group, Group 4-8; kindled rats received selenium, ceftriaxone100, ceftriaxone200, selenium + ceftriaxone100 and selenium + ceftriaxone200 mg/kg/day respectively for a week. At the end of the study, behavioral tests were performed. Oxidative stress, inflammatory markers, neurotransmitters and GLT-1 were measured in brain tissue homogenate. Brain histopathological investigation was also done. PTZ-kindled rats exhibited increased Racine score, besides behavioral tests and histopathological changes, significant elevation in oxidative stress and inflammatory markers, with decrease in serotonin, dopamine, GABA levels and GLT-1 expressions. Selenium and Ceftriaxone alone or combined treatment decreased Racine score with remarkable improvement in behavioral and histopathological changes. The antioxidant enzymes, neurotransmitters and GLT-1 expressions were increased, along with reduced TNF-α, IL-1 levels. Current study showed that selenium + ceftriaxone100 group represents a possible approach to improve epilepsy particularly through inhibiting oxidative stress and inflammation.

Efficacy of Cicuta virosa medicinal preparations against pentylenetetrazole-induced seizures

Epileptic seizures are characterized by imbalanced inhibition-excitation cycle that triggers biochemical alterations responsible for jeopardized neuronal integrity. Conventional antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) have been the mainstay option for treatment and control; however, symptomatic control and potential to exacerbate the seizure condition calls for viable alternative to these chemical agents. In this context, natural product-based therapies have accrued great interest in recent years due to competent disease management potential and lower associated adversities. Cicuta virosa (CV) is one such herbal remedy that is used in traditional system of medicine against myriad of disorders including epilepsy. Homeopathic medicinal preparations (HMPs) of CV were assessed for their efficacy in pentylenetetrazole (PTZ)-induced acute and kindling models of epilepsy. CV HMPs increased the latency and reduced the duration of tonic-clonic phase in acute model while lowering the kindling score in the kindling model that signified their role in modulating GABAergic neurotransmission and potassium conductance. Kindling-induced impairment of cognition, memory, and motor coordination was ameliorated by the CV HMPs that substantiated their efficacy in imparting sustained neuronal fortification. Furthermore, biochemical evaluation showed attenuated oxidative stress load through reduced lipid peroxidation and strengthened free radical scavenging mechanism. Taken together, CV HMPs exhibited promising results in acute and kindling models and must be further assessed through molecular and epigenomic studies.