Anticonvulsant role of adenosine

The effects of 2-chloroadenosine (2-CLA), a metabolically stable analog of adenosine, and aminophylline, an adenosine receptor antagonist, on seizures produced by pilocarpine (PILO) were examined in rats. The effects of 2-CLA on amygdaloid and hippocampal kindled seimres were also examined. In the animals pretreated with aminophylline (25-100 mg/kg), a non-convulsant dose of PILO (100 mg/kg) resulted in severe motor limbic seizures which rapidly evolved to status epilepticus. 2-CLA (5-10 mg/kg) blocked the appearance of behavioral and EEG seizures produced by a convulsant dose of PILO (380 mg/kg) and completely blocked the evolution of hippocampal and amygdaloid kindled seizures. The results indicate that purinergic mechanisms are involved in the modulation of seizure threshold within the limbic system.