Circling Behavior and 2- deoxyglucose mapping in rats Damaly Ferreira and Tamara Dennis Albert Einstein College of Medicine Mentor: Dr. Jana Veliskova

What is a Seizure? Synchronized electrical discharges in the brain.

Most Common Causes of Seizures  Genetic Factors -Hereditary disorders or liable to seizures  Head Injuries -Skull fractures  Strokes/Cerebral Vascular Disorders -Bleeding in or into the brain -Lack of blood flow to the brain  Metabolic Disturbances -Electrolyte disturbances (change in sodium, calcium, or magnesium levels) -Hypoxia (lowered oxygen delivery to the brain) -Hepatic failure (severe liver disease)  Toxic Causes - Drugs:cocaine, heroine, amphetamines and PCP

 Infections -Meningitis, encephalitis and HIV  Tumors -Both malignant and benign  Degenerative Disorders -Tuberous sclerosis -Neurofibromatosis -Phenylketonuria (PKU)  Brain Damage During Birth -Lack of Oxygen -Trauma  Fever

Types of Seizures Types of Seizures  Partial/Focal Seizures a. Simple Partial Seizures (Focal Jacksonian Seizures) b. Complex Partial Seizures  Generalized Seizures a. Grand Mal Seizures (Tonic-Clonic Convulsions) b. Petit Mal Seizures (Absence Seizures)

 Simple Partial Seizures -Person remains conscious -Jerking of arms and legs -Head turns from side to side -Paralysis -Weak -Numbness  Complex Partial Seizures -Occur during a 2-4 minutes time period -Stops suddenly and stares into space -Automatisms -Confusion -Unawareness -Deja Vu

 Grand Mal Seizures -Loss of Consciousness -Last for 5-20 minutes -Fall down or slump over -Loss of bladder control -Drooling or biting of tongue -Head and body jerks -Aura occurs  Petit Mal Seizures -May lose consciousness for 3-30 seconds -Motor movements -No memory of event -Blank stare into space for 5-10 seconds (daydreaming)

Treatments  Medicine:Anti-convulsants (control but can not cure Seizures) -Topiramate -Phenobarbital  Surgery -surgeons place electrodes beneath the scalp that may help define epileptogenic areas of the brain.

Side effects of Anti-convulsants  Drowsiness  Nausea  Dizziness  Coordination problems  Difficulty concentrating  Aggressiveness  Acute Glaucoma  Visual abnormality

What is the Substantia Nigra?  Part of the midbrain that is responsible for movements.  It is involved in the expression of movements disorders and seizures.  It has two parts: Pars reticulta and pars compacta.

Substantia Nigra on a Coronal Section

Substantia Nigra on a Sagittal section

Methods & Procedures  Sprague Dawley rats at postnatal day 15  Intracranial Surgery to implant a cannula into the substantia nigra pars reticulata  Intranigral Microinfusion of muscimol to produce rotational behavior  2- Deoxyglucose autoradiography to map the structures activated by the muscimol infusion

Objective  To establish the features of the Substantia Nigra and how the sex hormones influence it’s development  The Substania Nigra controls seizures. It is a part of seizure controlling network and it is different in males and females.

References  Define Phenylketonuria. ; July  Define Neurofibromatosis. : July 2005  Dictionary definitions content: world net 2.0. Princeton University : copyright 2003  Dr. Alan Greene. : July  Dr. Jana Veliskova. Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University : July 2005  Epilepsy. /epelepsy.htm : July /epelepsy.htmhttp://minto.sd74.bc.ca/html/epilepsy /epelepsy.htm  NeurologyChannel. Neurologychannel.com/seizures/types.shtml: May 2005

Acknowledgements  Dr. Jana Veliskova  Dr. Sat Bhattacharya  Harlem Children Society  Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center  Hong  Ka Lai Poon