A recent study performed by Timothy Jelga reveals a possible culprit behind the cause of epileptic seizures may be due to a gene called Kv12.2, a potassium-channel gene found in the ion channels of neuron transmitters in the brain. Epileptic seizures are caused by nerves in the brain firing uncontrollably from a small stimulus or even several small stimuli. The Kv12.2 gene aids in the suppression of signaling between neurons in the brain because it is potassium based, sodium and calcium based channels help to excite and promote the sending of signals from neuron to neuron. Jelga said that the Kv12.2 gene was a good candidate to study because it has been found in sea-dwelling creatures discovered to be some 542-million years old and previous studies have shown that the Kv12.2 gene is possibly related to spatial memory.
In testing his theory, Jelga studied the brains of mice through an EEG at the Baylor College of Medicine with Jeffrey Noebels. They found that the mice who had frequent seizures without convulsions were missing the Kv12.2 gene. In finding this, Jelga and Noebels stimulated several mice with a chemical which caused seizures to occur. In doing so, they found that mice with the Kv12.2 gene had a much greater resistance to a seizure than did the mice who were missing or had a defective Kv12.2 gene. These results state that mice had an abnormally low firing threshold of the nerve cells in mice without a properly functioning Kv12.2 gene. Because of these results, Jelga said that the potassium channels are necessary to keep the brain "quiet" and help prevent seizures from happening. Although epileptic seizures may be hereditary, they also occur without any sign of the parents of the offspring who has epileptic seizures not to have an epileptic seizure history, but if epileptic seizures are more or less based on ion-channel defects, medicine may be created to focus more on this aspect of neurons with fewer side effects.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100801190251.htm
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I am glad someone decided to blog about this. I work at a daycare, and one of the little girls that I watch has to take medicine every day for epileptic seizures. A few months ago she had a seizure right in front of me. I have seen my fare share of seizures, but when you see a 3 year old have one, it's a little different, it's scarier. I have always wanted to know what causes this to happen because my first cousin has seizures as well. I am glad to know that it may not be hereditary and that people are taking a step in the right direction to help solve this issue.
ReplyDeleteThis is very interesting because i have a friend who is an epileptic and would usually have a seizure every six months if he didn't take his medicine. I asked him if he ever found out why he all of a sudden became an epileptic becuase he never had a seziure untill we were in 7th grade. All he told me was he thinks its because he does drugs but after reading this im going to ask him if any of his biological family has a history of seziures.
ReplyDelete