Exogenous ketones exert antiseizure effects and modulate the gut microbiome and mycobiome in a clinically relevant murine model of epilepsy.

Objective: Despite growing interest in the potential use of exogenous ketones for the treatment of epilepsy, their impact on seizures and the gut microbiome and mycobiome remain unclear.

Methods: Here, we examined the effects of both oral gavage and subcutaneous (SC) injection of a ketone ester (KE) in spontaneously epileptic Kcna1-null (KO) mice that model seminal aspects of human temporal lobe epilepsy. Electroencephalographic recordings and biochemical analyses were performed in KE-treated KO mice.

Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy is prevented by blocking postictal hypoxia.

Epilepsy is at times a fatal disease. Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) is the leading cause of epilepsy-related mortality in people with intractable epilepsy and is defined by exclusion; non-accidental, non-toxicologic, and non-anatomic causes of death. While SUDEP often follows a bilateral tonic-clonic seizure, the mechanisms that ultimately lead to terminal apnea and then asystole remain elusive and there is a lack of preventative treatments.

Cannabidiol Impairs Brain Mitochondrial Metabolism and Neuronal Integrity.

The mechanisms underlying the clinical effects of CBD remain poorly understood. Given the increasing evidence for CBD's effects on mitochondria, we sought to examine in more detail whether CBD impacts mitochondrial function and neuronal integrity. We utilized BE(2)-M17 neuroblastoma cells or acutely isolated brain mitochondria from rodents using a Seahorse extracellular flux analyzer and a fluorescent spectrofluorophotometer assay.

Comorbid epilepsy in autism spectrum disorder: Implications of postnatal inflammation for brain excitability.

Objective: In different cohorts, 5%-30% of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) also have epilepsy. The high co-occurrence of these disorders suggests that a common mechanistic link may exist. The underlying pathophysiology of this comorbidity remains unknown.