Nonconvulsive status epilepticus in rats: impaired responsiveness to exteroceptive stimuli

An animal model of human complex partial status epilepticus induced by lithium chloride and pilocarpine administration was developed in our laboratory. The objective of the study was to provide a detailed analysis of both ictal and postictal behavior and to quantify seizure-related morphological damage. In order to determine the animal's responsiveness to either visual or olfactory stimuli, adult male rats were submitted to the following behavioral paradigms: the object response test, the social interaction test, and the elevated plus-maze test. The rotorod test was used to evaluate motor performance. Two weeks after status epilepticus, brains were morphologically examined and quantification of the brain damage was performed. Profound impairment of behavior as well as responsiveness to exteroceptive stimuli correlated with the occurrence of epileptic EEG activity. When the epileptic EEG activity ceased, responsiveness of the pilocarpine-treated animals was renewed. However, remarkable morphological damage persisted in the cortical regions two weeks later. This experimental study provides support for the clinical evidence that even nonconvulsive epileptic activity may cause brain damage. We suggest that the model can be used for the study of both functional and morphological consequences of prolonged nonconvulsive seizures.