Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the loop diuretic, furosemide, on maximal electroshock- and leptazol-induced seizures in mice. Mice were given furosemide, phenytoin and diazepam intraperitoneally and after 30 min they were challenged with maximal electroshock (MES) or leptazol. In MES, furosemide at doses of 25 and 50 mg/kg did not protect against hind limb tonic extension (HLTE) while phenytoin (25 mg/kg) provided protection against HLTE. Furosemide at doses of 25 and 50 mg/kg afforded protection against leptazol-induced Racine stage 4 seizures (P < 0.05), but 100% (all the animals in a group surviving) protection was only provided at 30 min by the 50 mg/kg dose.  Diazepam at 2 mg/kg did not offer 100% protection at 30 min. Results provide evidence that furosemide is effective against leptazol-induced seizures, but not against maximal electroshock-induced seizures; and the present results suggest that furosemide is more potent than diazepam against leptazol-induced seizures.

Key words: Furosemide, phenytoin, diazepam, maximal electroshock (MES), leptazol, seizures.

Abbreviation

MES, maximal electroshock; GABA, gamma-amino butyric acid;NKCC₁, isoform 1 of the Na₊-K₊-2Cl co-transporter; KCC₂, isoform 2 of the K₊-2Cl co-transporter; BDNF, brain-derived neurotrophic factor; TrkB, tropomyosin-related tyrosine kinase receptor B; NMDA, N-methyl-_D-aspartate; ECS, extra-cellular space; NADPH,nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate hydrogen; SD, standard deviation; ANOVA,analysis of variance.