A preliminary study on mechanism of experimental epilepsy induced by icv quinolinic acid in mice / 中国药理学通报

ABSTRACT

The effect of GABA ergic system in the brain in mediating convulsions induced by quinolinic acid (QA) was studied. Muscimol,an agonist of GABAA-receptor, and aminooxyacetic acid (AOAA),an inhibitor of GABA transami-nase(GABA-T) ,and alprazolam which increased the affinity of GABA-receptor as it binds with benzodiazepine-receptor, were used to increase GABAergic function in the brain. Results showed that the above substances antagonized QA-induced convulsions. In contrast, bicu-culline,an antagonist of GABAA-receptor, and 3-mercaptopropionic acid (3-MP), an inhibitor of both GABA synthesis and its release, were used to decrease GABA ergic function in the CNS. They were found to potentiate QA-induced seizures. All these results suggest that GABA ergic system in brain plays an important role in modulating QA-induced convulsions.