Effect of bacterial lypopolysaccharide on penicillin-induced seizure activity in rats

In experiments on Wistar rats, we found that, within an early period (2 to 4 h) after injection of bacterial lypopolysaccharide, LPS (0.1 mg/kg, i.p.), the latency of generalized seizures induced by injection of benzylpenicillin (sodium salt; 3.0 million IU/kg, i.p.) became significantly shorter, while the severity of seizure manifestations was higher than in the control group. Within this period, the power of oscillations of the delta and alpha-frequency ranges increased in the frontal cortex and hippocampal structures; fast ECoG components (beta and gamma rhythms) were suppressed, and the power of the theta activity decreased. In the hippocampal structures, these changes were more clearly pronounced, as compared with the neocortex. Within a later period of the action of LPS (12 to 18 h from the moment of injection), the latency of penicillin-induced seizures significantly exceeded the control value, and the severity of such seizures was lower. Under such conditions, we observed a smaller power of the synchronized activity of delta and alpha frequencies combined with intensification of the theta activity (most clearly pronounced in the hippocampal structures), and also an increase in the power of “desynchronized” rhythms (beta and gamma oscillations) in the cortex and hippocampus.