Uses of Chlorine Ion Uptake Inhibitors for Treatment of Neurological Disorders and Prophylaxis

Reference number: STC-LS-0447
Inventor(s): D. Bragin; J. Connor; W. Mueller; S. Peterson
For more information, contact: Jovan Heusser, M.B.A. (505-272-7908) or Lisa Kuuttila (505-272-7905)

Patent(s)

Application(s) pending

Background

Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is a chronic neurological condition characterized by recurrent epileptic seizures arising from both temporal lobes of the brain. Mesial temporal lobe epilepsy, one of the two main types of TLE, arises in the inner portion of the temporal lobe specifically in the hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, and amygdala. This type of TLE is the most common form of epilepsy in adults and frequently becomes resistant to drug therapy, leaving only a neurosurgery option to control seizures.

TLE develops following a variety of insults including brain injury and status epilepticus (SE). Additional insults known to precipitate TLE include stroke and brain tumors. In about 70% of cases the cause is unknown. Although initial causes of TLE may vary, the behavioral and histo-pathological hallmarks of TLE are remarkably similar in all etiologies. This has lead researchers to hypothesize that there is a major common pathway downstream of initiating causes.

Technology

This novel invention provides methods for the treatment or prevention of the onset of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) in a subject, or a method to reduce the severity of TLE in a subject. This is accomplished by administering a specific inhibitor to the subject after the subject has suffered from an insult known to cause TLE, or after an initial seizure where a clear cause can not be identified.

Applications/Advantages

•Our technology describes a way to treat, prevent, or lessen the severity of temporal lobe epilepsy.
•Our specific inhibitor targets a membrane transport protein known to alter neurotransmitter activity and thus a pathway known to cause abnormal cellular activity and seizures.
•This technology represents a clear advance to the treatment of temporal lobe epilepsy that may be triggered from a variety of different insults.
•This technology is expected not to suffer from the side effects of current antiepileptic drugs.
•This technology is expected to lessen cognitive deficits associated with TLE and current treatments.

Keywords

Pharmaceutical

Related Categories

• Compounds/Other Therapeutic Agents and Methods