Safety of the Transcranial Focal Electrical Stimulation via Tripolar Concentric Ring Electrodes for Hippocampal CA3 Subregion Neurons in Rats

Noninvasive transcranial focal stimulation affects the convulsive seizure-induced P-glycoprotein expression and function in rats

Transcranial focal stimulation (TFS) is a noninvasive neuromodulation strategy that reduces seizure activity in different experimental models. Nevertheless, there is no information about the effects of TFS in the drug-resistant phenotype associated with P-glycoprotein (Pgp) overexpression. The present study focused on determining the effects of TFS on Pgp expression after an acute seizure induced by 3-mercaptopropionic acid (MPA). P-glycoprotein expression was analyzed by western blot in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus of rats receiving 5 min of TFS (300 Hz, 50 mA, 200 μs, biphasic charge-balanced squared pulses) using a tripolar concentric ring electrode (TCRE) prior to administration of a single dose of MPA. An acute administration of MPA induced Pgp overexpression in cortex (68 ± 13.4%, p < 0.05 vs the control group) and hippocampus (48.5 ± 14%, p < 0.05, vs the control group). This effect was avoided when TFS was applied prior to MPA. We also investigated if TFS augments the effects of phenytoin in an experimental model of drug-resistant seizures induced by repetitive MPA administration. Animals with MPA-induced drug-resistant seizures received TFS alone or associated with phenytoin (75 mg/kg, i.p.). TFS alone did not modify the expression of the drug-resistant seizures. However, TFS combined with phenytoin reduced seizure intensity, an effect associated with a lower prevalence of major seizures (50%, p = 0.03 vs phenytoin alone). Our experiments demonstrated that TFS avoids the Pgp overexpression induced after an acute convulsive seizure. In addition, TFS augments the phenytoin effects in an experimental model of drug-resistant seizures. According with these results, it is indicated that TFS may represent a new neuromodulatory strategy to revert the drug-resistant phenotype.