Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is one of the more difficult forms of epilepsy to treat, with many patients continuing to experience seizures despite the use of anti-epileptic drugs. Therefore, there is an urgent need to investigate anti-epileptogenic therapies for this disease. A drug called rapamycin has been shown to block the occurrence of seizures in the brains of animals, however, it is unclear how the drug works and whether it would be effective in human temporal lobe epilepsy. For our study, we have developed a genetic strategy to mimic the effect of the drug rapamycin in rodents in a specific type of brain cell involved in learning and memory. If this genetic approach is effective at controlling seizures, it will tell us how and where the drug produces its anti-seizure effects. These findings will guide the development of the drug for use in treating temporal lobe epilepsy.
