Febrile Seizures Induce Neuronal Death in the Developing Brain.
Abstract number :
3.009
Submission category :
Year :
2001
Submission ID :
2023
Source :
www.aesnet.org
Presentation date :
12/1/2001 12:00:00 AM
Published date :
Dec 1, 2001, 06:00 AM
Authors :
S. Orozco-Suarez, Doctor in Sciences, Unit of Research in Neurological Diseases, Mexican Institute of Social Security, Mexico, DF, Mexico; A. Feria-Velasco, Doctor in Sciences, Experimental Pathology Division, CIATEJ-SEP-CONACYT, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mex
RATIONALE: The febrile seizures are the most prevalent age-specific seizures in infant and young children. Whether they result in long term sequels such neuronal lost and lobe epilepsy, it is controversial. Some studies of human febrile seizure have found no adverse effects on the developing brain. However, adults with temporal lobe epilepsy have a history of prolonged febrile seizures in early life. This study is aimed to know if hyperthermia-induced seizures produces neuronal death in infant and young rats.
METHODS: Infant rats were subject to hyperthermic seizures (a model of prolonged febrile seizure) two times, at 10 and a 15 days of age. Neuronal death was assessed by ligth microscopy in sections of forebrain, stained by Hematoxilin and Eosin and with in situ terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL stain), 24 hrs after the first hyperthermic seizure and 1,5,15 and 25 days after the second hyperthermia-induced seizure.
RESULTS: With Hematoxilin and Eosin stain we observed eosinophilic neurons probably attributable to hyperthermic seizures, they were dark, shrunken and necrotic aspect, their nuclei were picnotic and contained clump and dispersed chromatin,in the same way, some TUNEL positive neurons were found in hippocampal formation in CA3,CA1 and dentate gyrus and the neocortex at 5,15 and 25 days after the second induced seizures.
CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that hyperthermia-induced seizures promote a degenerative process in which apoptotic and necrotic features on neurons overlap in young rats. Neuronal death seems to be attributable both to necrosis as well as by apoptosis mechanism activated by hyperthermic seizures.
Support: This work was supported by IMSS FP-0038-1286 grant