Examining the relationship between response threshold to electrical stimulation and sensitivity to pentylenetetrazol kindling in male rats

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Arak University of Medical Sciences, Arak, Iran.

2 Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Arak University of Medical Sciences.

Abstract

Background and aim
Previous studies have demonstrated that foot electrical stimulation has the potential to inhibit kindling development in rats. However, it remains unclear whether there is a relationship between the sensitivity to electrical stimulation and its inhibitory effect on kindling. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the correlation between chemical kindling and the electrical properties of the rat's paw.
Methods
Thirty-two male Westar rats were divided into three groups: control, 24 hours after kindling, and 60 days after kindling. PTZ kindling was induced by injecting PTZ (37.5 mg/kg). Response threshold to electrical stimulation and paw electrical resistance were measured in three groups.
Results
The results showed that there is a positive correlation between stage 5 duration and response threshold to electrical stimulation (p<0.05) and a negative correlation between stage 5 latency and the response threshold to electrical stimulation (p<0.050. Measuring the paw resistance showed that while in the control rats, there was no significant correlation between the response threshold to electrical stimulation and the plantar electrical resistance, in rats that had 60 days passed since their chemical kindling, there was a significant (p<0.05) and positive correlation.
Conclusion
The data suggest that rats with a higher threshold for electrical stimulation have a faster onset and longer duration of seizures induced by Pentylenetetrazole. Furthermore, comparing paw resistance revealed the potential impact of kindling on the relationship between paw electrical properties and seizure susceptibility.

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