Cysteamine suppresses kindled seizures in pentylenetetrazol-kindled rats.

Rats were kindled by intraperitoneal injection of pentylenetetrazol (PTZ) (30 mg/kg) every 48 h. Once kindled, animals received a single injection of cysteamine (200 mg/kg) and subsequent responses to PTZ were observed. Cysteamine, an agent which depletes brain somatostatin and suppresses kindled seizures in amygdaloid-kindled rats, markedly suppressed the severity of PTZ-induced seizures in PTZ-kindled rats as well. However, it did not alter the convulsive response of non-kindled rats to a submaximal convulsive dose (50 mg/kg) of PTZ. The results support a role for somatostatin in kindling.