PHAR 5091.009

Course Name: Current Issues in Basic Research on Mechanisms of Epilepsy

Course Director: Drs. José Cavazos (Pharmacology & Medicine) and Robert Brenner (Physiology)

Course Content:

Epilepsy is an episodic neurological disorder that is characterized by recurrent spontaneous seizures. Although quite heterogeneous in clinical presentation, the condition has in common a mechanistic basis in neuronal hyperactivity and hyper-synchrony of neuronal circuits. Recent decades have witnessed tremendous advances in our understanding of genetic, molecular, cellular, and network mechanisms that may have a role in epileptogenesis, as well as advances in the treatment of epilepsy. This course will introduce students to basic mechanistic questions in the field of epilepsy research through a combination of didactic lectures and seminars. The course will meet once per week for 1.5 hours (13 weeks), and will alternate weeks between lectures by the course directors, and journal club-style research paper presentations given by the students. Each lecture will give an overview of a specific topic in epilepsy research, and the lecturer will assign a recent paper relevant to that topic to be presented by a student the following week.

Grading:

Students will be required to give oral presentations and are expected to participate in class discussions. Additionally, students will be required to write a brief (maximum 8 pages, double-spaced) paper that reviews one or two recent papers (approved by a course director) in a subtopic of their choosing. The review paper should be written in the style of an Epilepsy Currents "Commentary" on current literature. (Epilepsy Currents is freely available on the web at www.aesnet.org) Letter grades will be based on student presentations (40%), participation in discussions (30%), and the review paper (30%).

Course Syllabus:
Week 1: Introduction and Classification of Epilepsies - Cavazos
Week 2: Genetics of Epilepsy - Brenner
Week 3: Student Presentation
Week 4: GABA and Epilepsy - Sanchez
Week 5: Student Presentation
Week 6: Sprouting and Epileptogenesis - Cavazos
Week 7: Student Presentation
Week 8: Potassium Channelopathies - Brenner
Week 9: Student Presentation
Week 10: HCN Channels and Excitability - Sanchez
Week 11: Student Presentation
Week 12: Anti-epileptic Drugs - Cavazos
Week 13: Student Presentation

Optional Text: Epilepsy: Scientific Foundations and Clinical Practice, Rho JM, Sankar R, and Cavazos JE (eds.), Marcel Dekker, 2004.

Prerequisites: Consent of course director.

Credit Hours: 1 credit

When Offered: Fall and Spring Semesters