H.E.J Research Institute of Chemistry, International Center For Chemical and Biological Sciences, University of Karachi, Karachi, 75270, Pakistan; Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Karachi, Karachi, 75270, Pakistan.
Seizure. 2020 Nov;82:65-79. doi: 10.1016/j.seizure.2020.09.015. Epub 2020 Sep 26.
Epilepsy is a brain disease associated with epileptic seizures as well as with neurobehavioral outcomes of this condition. In the last century, inflammation emerged as a crucial factor in epilepsy etiology. Various brain insults through activation of neuronal and non-neuronal brain cells initiate a series of inflammatory events. Growing observations strongly suggest that abnormal activation of critical inflammatory processes contributes to epileptogenesis, a gradual process by which a normal brain transforms into the epileptic brain. Increased knowledge of inflammatory pathways in epileptogenesis has unveiled mechanistic targets for novel antiepileptic therapies. Molecules specifically targeting the pivotal inflammatory pathways may serve as promising candidates to halt the development of epilepsy. The present paper reviews the pieces of evidence conceptually supporting the potential role of inflammatory mechanisms and the relevant blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption in epileptogenesis. Also, it discusses the mechanisms underlying inflammation-induced neuronal-glial network impairment and highlights innovative neuroregulatory actions of typical inflammatory molecules. Finally, it presents a brief analysis of observations supporting the therapeutic role of inflammation-targeting tiny molecules in epileptic seizures.
癫痫是一种与癫痫发作以及该疾病的神经行为后果相关的脑部疾病。在上个世纪，炎症成为癫痫发病机制中的一个关键因素。通过神经元和非神经元脑细胞的激活，各种脑部损伤会引发一系列炎症事件。越来越多的观察结果强烈表明，异常激活关键炎症过程会导致癫痫发生，即正常大脑逐渐转变为癫痫大脑的过程。对癫痫发生中炎症途径的深入了解揭示了新型抗癫痫治疗的机制靶点。专门针对关键炎症途径的分子可能成为阻止癫痫发展的有前途的候选药物。本文综述了支持炎症机制和相关血脑屏障（BBB）破坏在癫痫发生中潜在作用的概念性证据，并讨论了炎症诱导的神经元-神经胶质网络损伤的机制，强调了典型炎症分子的创新性神经调节作用。最后，简要分析了支持针对炎症的小分子在癫痫发作中治疗作用的观察结果。
