Exposure to bacterial lipopolysaccharidein early life affects the expression of ionotropic glutamate receptor genes and is accompanied by disturbances in long-term potentiation and cognitive functions in young rats.

Infections in childhood play an essential role in the pathogenesis of cognitive and psycho-emotional disorders. One of the possible mechanisms of these impairments is changes in the functional properties of NMDA and AMPA glutamate receptors in the brain. We suggest that bacterial infections during the early life period, which is critical for excitatory synapse maturation, can affect the subunit composition of NMDA and AMPA receptors.

Impairments in cognitive functions and emotional and social behaviors in a rat lithium-pilocarpine model of temporal lobe epilepsy.

The aim of this study was to evaluate in detail behavioral patterns and comorbid disturbances in rats using the lithium-pilocarpine model. A comprehensive set of behavioral tests was used to investigate behavioral patterns, including the open field test, Morris water maze, Y-maze, fear conditioning, the elevated plus maze, the forced swimming test, and the resident-intruder paradigm. Motor and explorative activity, learning and memory, anxiety and depressive-like behavior, aggression, and communication were evaluated 8-15 d after pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus (SE) (latent phase of the model) and 41-53 d (chronic phase) after pilocarpine-induced SE.

Transient Switching of NMDA-Dependent Long-Term Synaptic Potentiation in CA3-CA1 Hippocampal Synapses to mGluR-Dependent Potentiation After Pentylenetetrazole-Induced Acute Seizures in Young Rats.

The mechanisms of impairment in long-term potentiation after status epilepticus (SE) remain unclear. We investigated the properties of LTP induced by theta-burst stimulation in hippocampal slices of rats 3 h and 1, 3, and 7 days after SE. Seizures were induced in 3-week old rats by a single injection of pentylenetetrazole (PTZ).

Alterations in mRNA expression of glutamate receptor subunits and excitatory amino acid transporters following pilocarpine-induced seizures in rats.

Temporal lobe epilepsy is the most prevalent form of complex partial seizure, and it is frequently triggered by an initial brain-damaging insult. The prevention of epileptogenesis after a primary event could be a key innovative approach to epilepsy treatment. Therefore, it is critical to understand the pathogenic mechanisms of this process in detail.

Memantine attenuates cognitive impairments after status epilepticus induced in a lithium-pilocarpine model.

The capability of memantine, a noncompetitive antagonist of the NMDA receptors, to prevent impairments of cognitive functions in rats was investigated in the lithium-pilocarpine model of epilepsy. After status epilepticus, rats exhibited impaired exploratory behavior and spatial memory, and a decline of extinction of orienting behavior. Memantine administration prevented these disturbances.