EFFECT OF ELECTROACUPUNCTURE ON THE LEVEL OF PREPROENKEPHALIN MESSENGER-RNA IN RAT DURING PENICILLIN-INDUCED EPILEPSY

Our previous studies have shown that seizure induced by injecting peni cillin (0.24 mg/2 mul) into hippocampus could be inhibited by electroa cupuncture (EA) probably via decreasing enkephalin content in hippocam pus. To determine whether this change reflected the peptide synthesis, preproenkephalin (PPE) mRNA was detected in hippocampus and some othe r limbic structures during seizure and after EA treatment by in situ h ybridization. Four hours after injecting penicillin into hippocampus, PPE mRNA levels were significantly increased by 10 folds in entorhinal cortex, subiculum, CA1 area of hippocampus, amygdaloid nucleus and pi riform cortex, whereas EA treatment apparently attenuated the seizure- induced increase of PPE mRNA in the areas mentioned above. The results indicated that EA may regulate the biosynthesis of PPE in hippocampus during seizure by an alteration in gene transcription.