Post-status epilepticus models: electrical stimulation

Electrical stimulation of brain regions in rats or mice via intracranial electrodes with repeated high frequency pulse trains produces a limbic status epilepticus (SE) that becomes self-sustained for many hours. SE leads to characteristic neuropathological changes and seizures—focal, often secondarily generalized—that start to develop after a latent period. These are characteristic features of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy in patients. The model has many characteristics that are similar to the pharmacological post-SE models (kainic acid and pilocarpine models), but is much more labor-intensive. The advantage, however, is that mortality is generally lower than in the other models, and that the presence of the implanted electrodes allows registration of the electroencephalogram (EEG), so that development of epilepsy can be accurately monitored. Depending on the choice of the brain region or stimulus parameters, stimulation can lead to subtle differences in seizure development and expression that will be discussed in this chapter.