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Excitotoxic amino acid receptors in human complex partial epilepsy
L D Cahan1, J W Geddes, B H Choi
1Division of Neurosurgery, University of California, Irvine.
Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery
|January 1, 1990
Summary
Mesial temporal sclerosis in epilepsy shows increased N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) and kainic acid (KA) receptors in the entorhinal cortex. Sclerosis in the hippocampus (CA1, CA3) revealed a loss of these excitatory amino acid receptors.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Epilepsy Research
Background:
- Mesial temporal sclerosis is a common finding in epilepsy surgery.
- Vulnerable hippocampal regions have high excitatory amino acid receptor densities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) and kainic acid (KA) receptor densities in epilepsy.
- To compare receptor densities in surgically resected temporal lobes versus postmortem specimens.
Main Methods:
- Receptor autoradiography was used to quantify NMDA and KA receptor densities.
- Specimens from 5 epilepsy patients and 6 postmortem controls were analyzed.
Main Results:
- Epileptic specimens showed a 2-fold increase in NMDA receptors and increased KA receptors in the entorhinal cortex.
- Sclerotic regions CA1 and CA3 of the hippocampus exhibited a loss of NMDA and KA receptor density.
Conclusions:
- Aberrant excitatory circuits in the entorhinal cortex may contribute to hippocampal damage in epilepsy.
- Differential receptor density changes suggest specific mechanisms in epileptogenesis.