Müller M, Gähwiler B H, Rietschin L, Thompson S M
Brain Research Institute, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1993 Jan 1;90(1):257-61. doi: 10.1073/pnas.90.1.257.
The morphological and functional consequences of epileptic activity were investigated by applying the convulsants bicuculline and/or picrotoxin to mature rat hippocampal slice cultures. After 3 days, some cells in all hippocampal subfields showed signs of degeneration, including swollen somata, vacuolation, and dendritic deformities, whereas others displayed only a massive reduction in the number of their dendritic spines. Intracellular recordings from CA3 pyramidal cells revealed a decrease in the amplitude of evoked excitatory synaptic potentials. gamma-Aminobutyric acid-releasing interneurons and inhibitory synaptic potentials were unaffected. Seven days after withdrawal of convulsants, remaining cells possessed a normal number of dendritic spines, thus demonstrating a considerable capacity for recovery. The pathological changes induced by convulsants are similar to those found in the hippocampi of human epileptics, suggesting that they are a consequence, rather than a cause, of epilepsy.
通过向成熟大鼠海马切片培养物中应用惊厥剂荷包牡丹碱和/或印防己毒素，研究癫痫活动的形态学和功能后果。3天后，所有海马亚区的一些细胞显示出退化迹象，包括胞体肿胀、空泡化和树突畸形，而其他细胞仅表现出树突棘数量的大量减少。对CA3锥体细胞的细胞内记录显示，诱发的兴奋性突触电位幅度降低。释放γ-氨基丁酸的中间神经元和抑制性突触电位未受影响。惊厥剂撤药7天后，剩余细胞的树突棘数量正常，从而证明其具有相当大的恢复能力。惊厥剂引起的病理变化与人类癫痫患者海马中发现的变化相似，这表明它们是癫痫的结果而非原因。
