Anti-seizure effect of zinc on PTZ-induced epilepsy in rat model

Abstract

Epilepsy is a widespread and mainly severe neurological condition portrayed by recurring spontaneous seizures caused by the brain's abnormal electrical activity. According to new research, inflammation may be both a result and the cause of epileptic seizures. The highest zinc levels in the brain have been found in the hippocampus which is one of the most studied regions of the brain regarding epilepsy. Zinc may have an anti-inflammatory potential as zinc co-factors affect numerous biochemical and physiological reactions. In this study, we evaluated the effects of intraperitoneal zinc administration on seizure activity in murine PTZ model. Rats received either intraperitoneal (IP) zinc sulfate at two different dosages (50-100 mg/kg) or a placebo followed by pentylenetetrazole (IP), a strong seizure-inducing drug. The spike percentages were considerably lower in the PTZ (35 mg/kg) and 50 or 100 mg/kg zinc-treated groups (A3 and A4) than in the PTZ (35 mg/kg) and saline-treated group (A2; p < 0.001). When the PTZ (70 mg/kg) and zinc sulfate-administered groups (B3 and B4) were compared to the PTZ (70 mg/kg) group (B2), the zinc-administered groups had a substantially reduced RCS (p < 0.001). The onset time of FMJ was substantially longer in the PTZ (70 mg/ kg) and 50 mg/kg or 100 mg/kg zinc sulfate groups (B3 and B4) than in the PTZ (70 mg/kg) and saline (B2; p < 0.001). We discovered that MDA levels were considerably lower in the zinc-treated groups. SOD and HSP-70 levels were also increased significantly with zinc sulfate administration. In conclusion, our findings indicate that zinc has the potential to exhibit antiepileptogenic effects by alleviating acute oxidative stress and neuroinflammation in a rat PTZ-induced epilepsy model. Zinc (50 or 100 mg/kg i.p.) successfully decreased the spike percentages and RCS associated with PTZ kindling epilepsy, as well as considerably decreased MDA and increased SOD and HSP-70 levels in rat brain. According to these results, zinc sulfate may be used as an adjuvant therapy in combination with other antiepileptic drugs in the future (Tab. 3, Fig. 1, Ref. 27). Text in PDF www.elis.sk