Epilepsy and Adult Neurogenesis
- 1Brain Research Institute, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- 2Department of Neurology, University of Michigan Medical Center and VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
- Correspondence: jessberger{at}hifo.uzh.ch
Abstract
Seizure activity in the hippocampal region strongly affects stem cell-associated plasticity in the adult dentate gyrus. Here, we describe how seizures in rodent models of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (mTLE) affect multiple steps in the developmental course from the dividing neural stem cell to the migrating and integrating newborn neuron. Furthermore, we discuss recent evidence indicating either that seizure-induced aberrant neurogenesis may contribute to the epileptic disease process or that altered neurogenesis after seizures may represent an attempt of the injured brain to repair itself. Last, we describe how dysfunction of adult neurogenesis caused by chronic seizures may play an important role in the cognitive comorbidities associated with mTLE.
- Copyright © 2015 Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press; all rights reserved