Dynamic release of excitatory amino acid neurotransmitters after lamotrigine treatment in PTZ-induced epilepticus rat hippocampus

摘要

The antiepileptic drug lamotrigine (LTG) is an anticonvulsant drug frequently used in polytherapy and increasingly in Monotherapy, even in therapy of other neuropathic disease. LTG is considered to act by reducing excitatory glutamate (Glu) release due to an inhibition of Na+ channels. We have checked the dynamic release of Glu and aspartate (ASP) in hippocampus of pentylenetetrazol (PTZ)-induced epilepticus (SE) rats freely moving after treatment with LTG by means of microdialysis. It was showed that Glu release was significantly increased during the seizure/interical periods, and markedly decreased after the application of 20 mg/kg LTG. In contrast, Asp release was significantly increased during the seizure period as well as decreased during the interical periods, and no significant difference was found after the application of 20 mg/kg LTG. This effect of the drug was proportionally much greater in the case of Glu than Asp studied. The results indicated that the modulation of LTG on the Glu neurotransmitters certainly plays one of important roles on antiepilepsy efficacy in the pentylenetetrazol-evoked acute epileptogenesis model.