PET scans unlock clues that could help prevent epilepsy induced by head injuries
A team of neuroscience experts recently gained new insight into how post-traumatic epilepsy (PTE) manifests after someone sustains a traumatic brain injury.
It is estimated that PTE occurs in between 2% to 5% of individuals who have experienced TBI. PTE can be disabling, causing recurrent seizures that are unresponsive to preventive medications in up to 30% of patients. But a new discovery on the role of a brain receptor known as P2X7 could lead to improved outcomes by helping providers identify individuals who might be more vulnerable to PTE, researchers suggest.
"Traumatic brain injury is a major cause of epilepsy in adults, with many patients unable to benefit from existing anti-seizure treatments,” Tobias Engel, FutureNeuro investigator and senior lecturer in the RCSI Department of Physiology and Medical Physics, said in a news release on the findings. “Our research has identified the P2X7 receptor as a promising new target, offering the potential to prevent epilepsy before it develops, sparing patients from seizures and the burdens of ongoing medication."
Using a specialized P2X7 receptor tracer, researchers were able to target the receptor on PET imaging to analyze how it affects brain activity in the weeks following a serious head injury. In one group of mice models, the team observed reduced levels of P2X7R protein in the ipsilateral hippocampus post-injury and throughout the next three months. In this group, lower levels of P2X7R in microglia was correlated with increased seizure threshold, “suggesting that P2X7R contributed to brain hyperexcitability via its effects on microglia.”
“Treatment with P2X7R antagonists shortly after TBI reduced long-lasting brain hyperexcitability, reduced cortical contusion volume, and normalized injury-induced hyperactivity to control sham levels at three weeks post-TBI,” the team explains.
In other words, in the group of mice that had the receptor blocked shortly after injury, hyperexcitability significantly improved, while brain damage was minimized and behavior stabilized, indicating it could be a potential therapeutic target for providers treating TBI.
“By identifying a potential therapeutic target and a corresponding predictive diagnostic tool, this research opens new avenues for personalized care, improved outcomes and a better quality of life for patients with traumatic brain injury at risk of epilepsy,” principal investigator at CIC biomaGUNE, Jordi Llop, said in the same release.
The team acknowledges that their findings need to be further validated in human studies but they are optimistic that their work could contribute to improved outcomes.
Learn more about the findings here.
In addition to her background in journalism, Hannah also has patient-facing experience in clinical settings, having spent more than 12 years working as a registered rad tech. She began covering the medical imaging industry for Innovate Healthcare in 2021.