Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 19, 2026

Generation of Local CA1 γ Oscillations by Tetanic Stimulation
Published on: August 14, 2015
Transition from cortical slow oscillations of sleep to spike-wave seizures
Don M Tucker1, Allison C Waters1, Mark D Holmes2
1Electrical Geodesics, Inc., 1600 Millrace Drive, Suite 307, Eugene, OR, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA.
Objective:
In cats, spike-wave (SW) seizures have been observed to emerge from cortical slow oscillations (CSOs) and spindles in sleep. We examined a patient's generalized SW seizures that appeared to emerge from CSOs in sleep.
Methods:
Dense array (256-channel) electroencephalographic (dEEG) data were recorded during long-term monitoring for localizing seizure onset for neurosurgical planning. CSOs were identified on the basis of topographic criteria from dEEG studies of normal human sleep. SW discharges were identified in the surface dEEG and examined with distributed linear inverse neural source estimation.
Results:
This patient's SW discharges appeared to emerge from a series of CSOs that engaged the left frontal pole. Furthermore, 12Hz sleep spindles in this patient were often synchronized in time with the CSOs, and in some instances they shared a similar localization over the left frontal pole at the point of seizure onset.
Conclusions:
The initial discharges of each seizure engaged both the left frontal pole, which was the primary neural source of this patient's CSOs, and the left temporal lobe, which seemed critical for the evolution of this patient's seizures.
Significance:
The correlation of SW seizures with CSOs in animal studies may be observed in humans as well, providing clues to the pathology of arousal regulation in some cases of nocturnal epilepsy.
More Related Videos
10:22Interictal High Frequency Oscillations Detected with Simultaneous Magnetoencephalography and Electroencephalography as Biomarker of Pediatric Epilepsy
Published on: December 6, 2016
06:45Generation and On-Demand Initiation of Acute Ictal Activity in Rodent and Human Tissue
Published on: January 19, 2019
Related Concept Videos
Stages of Sleep
Before sleep begins, in wakefulness, the brain exhibits primarily beta waves, which are high in frequency and low in amplitude, indicating alertness...
Overview of Synapses
Seizures l: Introduction
Seizures: Classification
Seizures are typically classified into two main categories: focal and generalized seizures.
Focal Seizures
Focal seizures originate from specific regions of the brain. These seizures are further sub-classified into two types:
Sleep-Wake Cycles
NREM Sleep
NREM sleep comprises four progressive stages that seamlessly merge:
Seizures ll: Types