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Updated: May 11, 2026
Brain Source Imaging in Preclinical Rat Models of Focal Epilepsy using High-Resolution EEG Recordings
Published on: June 6, 2015
[SIRT1 expression and activity are up-regulated in the brain tissue of epileptic patients and rat models]
Yongping Chen1, Yunlan Xie, Heng Wang
1Department of Neurology, Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, China. chenyexi@yeah.net
Objective:
To investigate the expression and activity of silent information regulator 1 (SIRT1) in the temporal lobe of epileptic patients and rat models and explore its role in the occurrence and progression of epilepsy.
Methods:
The temporal lobe tissue of epileptic patients and rat models (induced by lithium-pilocarpine) were examined for SIRT1 expression using immunohistochemistry and Western blotting and also for SIRT1 activity using SIRT1 Deacetylase Assay Kit.
Results:
Immunohistochemistry detected positive SIRT1 expression mainly in the cytoplasm of the neurons in both human and rat brains, and the epileptic groups showed stronger SIRT1 immunoreactivity than the control group. Western blotting and activity assay showed that the expression and activity of SIRT1 were significantly increased in the temporal lobe of patients with refractory epilepsy as compared with the tissues samples from non-epileptic patients (P<0.05). In the rat models of epilepsy, SIRT1 expression was up-regulated at 6, 24, and 72 h and at 7, 14, 30, and 60 days after kindling (P<0.05) and SIRT1 activity was significantly increased at 6, 24, and 72 h and at 7 and 14 days (P<0.05), with the peak level of SIRT1 expression and activity occurring at 72 h.
Conclusion:
Up-regulation of SIRT1 expression and activity in the temporal lobe of epileptic patients and rat models may play an important role in the pathogenesis of epilepsy.
