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Physiological bases of the K+ and the glutamate/GABA hypotheses of epilepsy
- Source :
- Epilepsy Research. 108:995-1012
- Publication Year :
- 2014
- Publisher :
- Elsevier BV, 2014.
-
Abstract
- Epilepsy is a heterogeneous family of neurological disorders that manifest as seizures, i.e. the hypersynchronous activity of large population of neurons. About 30% of epileptic patients do not respond to currently available antiepileptic drugs. Decades of intense research have elucidated the involvement of a number of possible signaling pathways, however, at present we do not have a fundamental understanding of epileptogenesis. In this paper, we review the literature on epilepsy under a wide-angle perspective, a mandatory choice that responds to the recurrent and unanswered question about what is epiphenomenal and what is causal to the disease. While focusing on the involvement of K+ and glutamate/GABA in determining neuronal hyperexcitability, emphasis is given to astrocytic contribution to epileptogenesis, and especially to loss-of-function of astrocytic glutamine synthetase following reactive astrogliosis, a hallmark of epileptic syndromes. We finally introduce the potential involvement of abnormal glycogen synthesis induced by excess glutamate in increasing susceptibility to seizures.
- Subjects :
- Models, Neurological
Glutamic Acid
Epileptogenesis
Article
Epilepsy
GABA transaminase
medicine
Animals
Humans
gamma-Aminobutyric Acid
Neurons
Chemistry
Glutamate receptor
Brain
medicine.disease
Axon initial segment
Astrogliosis
Neurology
Metabotropic glutamate receptor
Astrocytes
Potassium
NMDA receptor
Neurology (clinical)
Neuroscience
Glycogen
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 09201211
- Volume :
- 108
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Epilepsy Research
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....362ef195967cab3fcb1021f84ae0e940