-Original-

Effects of Edaravone on Hippocampal Antioxidants in EL Mice

Asami Baba¹, Yasuhiko Kawakami^1,2, Kenichi Saito³, Yoshiya L. Murashima⁴ and Yasuhiko Itoh¹

¹Department of Pediatrics, Graduate School of Medicine, Nippon Medical School, Tokyo, Japan
²Department of Pediatrics, Nippon Medical School Tama Nagayama Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
³Department of Pathology, Nippon Medical School Tama Nagayama Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
⁴Graduate School of Human Health Science, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Tokyo, Japan

Background: The role of oxidative stress in susceptibility to seizures has been the focus of several recent studies. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the antiepileptic effects of the free radical scavenger edaravone on EL mice, a strain that is highly susceptible to convulsive seizures.
Methods: EL mice were treated intraperitoneally with edaravone or saline for 1 week. The levels of reduced glutathione (GSH), oxidized glutathione (GSSG) and 3 isozymes of superoxide dismutase (SOD) (cytoplasmic copper- and zinc-containing SOD, extracellular SOD, and mitochondrial manganese-containing SOD) were measured in the hippocampus, and electroencephalograms (EEGs) were used to evaluate seizure sensitivity.
Results: Hippocampal levels of GSSG were lower in the edaravone group than in the untreated control group, and the GSH/GSSG ratio, Cu/Zn-SOD, and EC-SOD activities were higher in the edaravone group. Edaravone shortened the duration of interictal spike discharges and clinically suppressed epileptic seizures.
Conclusion: Edaravone increases antioxidant potency and reduces seizure susceptibility in EL mice, making it a promising novel antiepileptic agent.

J Nippon Med Sch 2016; 83: 100-106

Keywords
EL mice, glutathione, antioxidant, edaravone, electroencephalogram

Correspondence to
Asami Baba, Department of Pediatrics, Graduate School of Medicine, Nippon Medical School, 1-1-5 Sendagi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8603, Japan
a-baba@nms.ac.jp

Received, December 1, 2015
Accepted, December 25, 2015