Prophylactic, prandial rofecoxib treatment lacks efficacy against acute PTZ-induced seizure generation and kindling acquisition.

Purpose: The goal of this study was to determine whether prophylactic prandial administration of rofecoxib, a selective cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor, could alter seizure generation, kindling acquisition, and/or kindling maintenance in the mouse pentylenetetrazole (PTZ) epilepsy model.

Methods: Male CD-1 mice were fed ad libitum with control chow or chow formulated to deliver 30 mg/kg/day rofecoxib. After 5 days, mice were treated with a single dose of 40 or 55 mg/kg PTZ (acute paradigm) or 40 mg/kg PTZ delivered daily (kindling paradigm). Seizure severity was scored on a four-point behavioral scale and COX-2 expression was assessed in brain slices from a subset of mice 3 h or 72 h after acute PTZ or following establishment of kindling.

Key Findings: Hippocampal COX-2 expression was transiently upregulated 3 h after an acute PTZ-induced convulsion and returned to baseline levels within 72 h, whereas it remained elevated for at least 72 h after the final seizure in the kindling paradigm. Despite this increase, chronic rofecoxib treatment did not attenuate the severity of acute PTZ-induced seizures and failed to alter kindling development or maintenance.

Significance: The present study demonstrates that prophylactic, prandial rofecoxib treatment lacks efficacy against acute PTZ-induced seizure generation and kindling acquisition, and does not reverse the kindled state once established.