Switching Off Epilectic Seizures by Switching On Light in Brain

Neuroscientists at UC Irvine said that they "switched off" epileptic seizures by "switching on the lights" in the brain of mice. This was possible by implanting fiber optic strands in the brain, to then use light signals to stimulate a special kind of protein, called opsins, which can inhibit specific neurons when activated.

While this was tested on mice, it could also work in humans and present a novel opportunity to treat the most severe manifestations of the brain disorder that affects 3 million Americans today.

Using a mouse model of temporal lobe epilepsy, Ivan Soltesz, Chancellor's Professor and chair of anatomy & neurobiology, and colleagues created an EEG-based brain-waves-sensing computer system which is capable to detect a seizure in real-time and then immediately sends the light signals which in turn activate the light-sensitive inhibiting opsin proteins in the brain.
The process was found to be able to arrest ongoing electrical seizure activity and reduce the incidence of severe "tonic-clonic" events.

"This approach is useful for understanding how seizures occur and how they can be stopped experimentally," Soltesz said. "In addition, clinical efforts that affect a minimum number of cells and only at the time of a seizure may someday overcome many of the side effects and limitations of currently available treatment options."

Epilepsy is a condition of recurrent spontaneous seizures that occur unpredictably, often cause changes in consciousness, and can preclude normal activities such as driving and working. In at least 40 percent of patients, seizures cannot be controlled with existing drugs, and even in those whose seizures are well controlled, the treatments can have major cognitive side effects.

(study supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Epilepsy Foundation, and the George E. Hewitt Foundation for Medical Research)

Study:
Esther Krook-Magnuson et al., On-demand optogenetic control of spontaneous seizures in temporal lobe epilepsy, Nature Communications, 2013, DOI: 10.1038/ncomms2376 (open access)