Interleukin-18 attenuates disruption of brain-blood barrier induced by status epilepticus within the rat piriform cortex in interferon-γ independent pathway.

Status epilepticus increases brain-blood barrier (BBB) permeability leading to vasogenic edema. This BBB disruption is usually confined within relatively limited cerebral regions including the piriform cortex (PC), and leads to epileptogenesis and contributes to progression of epilepsy. Although cytokines are at least partly responsible for changes in BBB permeability, the role of interleukin-18 (IL-18) in vasogenic edema is not yet explored in detail.