Effect of intracisternal 6-hydroxydopamine on seizure susceptibility in rats.

Rats with 60--70% deficits in brain catecholamines produced by the intracisternal injection of 6-hydroxydopamine were examined by 3 tests of seizure susceptibility. In all procedures (minimal and maximal electroshock and flurothyl convulsions) evidence for increased sensitivity to seizures was obtained. All the animals displayed normal rectal temperature at the times of seizure testing and normal blood chemistry at approximately the time of the third seizure test. These observations strengthen the widely held hypothesis that brain catecholaminergic neurons play a fundamental role in governing sensitivity to convulsions.