NMDA-RECEPTOR MEDIATED ELECTRICAL EPILEPTOGENESIS IN THE ORGANOTYPIC CULTURE OF RAT HIPPOCAMPUS

Extracellular field recordings were made in CA1 in the hippocampal explant cultures in oxygenated artificial cerebrospinal fluid. Schaffer collaterals were stimulated with 1-s trains of 60 Hz pulses every 10 min. Seizures were reliably elicited with progressive lengthening over 1-2 h. D-APV, an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) antagonist, stereoselectively blocked the development of seizures. Thus we have demonstrated that in vitro epileptogenesis occurs in hippocampal explant cultures through NMDA receptor mediated mechanisms.