Flurothyl seizure susceptibility in rats following prenatal methylazoxymethanol treatment

Abstract 

Methylazoxymethanol acetate (MAMac) is a potent teratogenic agent which can produce ectopic cell placement in developing rat brains. In the present study, we evaluated (i) whether prenatal exposure to MAMac results in a lowered seizure threshold to flurothyl and (ii) if there is a correlation between the number of ectopic cells in MAMac-exposed hippocampus and flurothyl-induced seizure latency. In 60 day old (P60) rats exposed to MAMac in utero, the latencies to myoclonic jerk (173 ± 2.3 s) and forelimb clonus (215 ± 4.6 s) were significantly shorter than those of controls (200 ± 6.9 s and 238 ± 8.8 s, respectively). MAMac also increased the proportion of flurothyl-treated rats that progressed from bilateral forelimb clonus to generalized tonic-clonic seizures (control: 33%; MAMac: 91%). Shorter seizure latencies were associated with an increased number of ectopic pyramidal cells in region CA/1CA2. These results suggest seizure susceptibility is enhanced in an animal model (MAMac) characterized by abnormal neuronal migration.

Keywords:  Ectopic, Flurothyl, Hippocampus, Rat, Seizure

No full text is available. To read the body of this article, please view the PDF online.