Effects of stimulus intensity and stimulus duration during acoustic priming on audiogenic seizures in C57BL/6J mice.

The effects of stimulus intensity and stimulus duration were examined in C57BL/6J mice not susceptible to audiogenic seizures (AGS) on the 1st exposure to an acoustic stimulus. Two experiments were performed. In the 1st, 16-day-old mice were exposed to 108, 112, 120, or 127 dB for 60 sec. Mice were then tested for susceptibility to AGS at varying ages thereafter. Increasing intensity of noise during priming resulted in heightened peak seizure risk, and extended duration of peak seizure risk, and a prolonged time of seizure risk. In the 2nd experiment, mice were exposed for 5, 15, 30, or 60 sec to 127 dB of noise. Five seconds of noise was barely sufficient to induce later susceptibility to AGS. Increasing stimulus duration from 15 to 30 to 60 sec resulted in increasing seizure risk and duration of peak risk period.