Suppression of Pentylenetetrazol‐Induced Seizures and c‐ fos Expression in Mouse Brain by L ‐Carnitine

Suppression of Pentylenetetrazol‐Induced Seizures and c‐ fos Expression in Mouse Brain by L ‐Carnitine: Yoshihisa I ryo , et al . Department of Environmental Toxicology, Institute of Industrial Ecological Sciences, University of Occupational and Environmental Health —Seizure development in ddY mice was recorded on a videotape for 20 min after injection of pentylenetetrazol (PTZ) (50 mg/kg) and analyzed in detail. In addition, expression of the c‐ fos gene in the brain was semi‐quantified by reverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction analysis. When saline, L‐carnitine (10 mmol/kg), or d ‐carnitine (10 mmol/kg) was administered 30 min prior to PTZ, the seizures were suppressed in mice given l ‐carnitine; the seizure scores were significantly lower in mice treated with L ‐carnitine at several time points, and the overall seizure scores were 31.43 ± 2.49, 10.57 ± 2.86 and 24.71 ± 3.05 (expressed as the mean + S.E.M., n=7), in saline, L ‐carnitine and D‐carnitine groups, respectively. The latency to the first clonic‐tonic seizure was also prolonged in mice treated with L ‐carnitine. The level of c‐ fos mRNA in the brain was lower in the animals treated with L ‐carnitine than in those treated with saline or D‐carnitine. Thus, l ‐carnitine shows not only anticonvulsive effects in one of the most widely used animal models of chemically induced seizures but also the potential to suppress the seizure‐associated expression of an immediate early gene in the brain.