The Effect of a New Type of Cortical Stimulation Instrument on the Motor Cortex of Temporal Lobe Epilepsy Model Rats by Electrical Stimulation

HE Xinru; HAO Weicheng; HAN Tian'ai; DU Xiaoping; SUN Meizhen

doi:10.12102/j.issn.1672-1349.2025.07.009

Abstract：Objective: To observe the efficiency of a new cortical stimulator in electrically stimulating the motor cortex of rats with a chronic temporal lobe epilepsy model, as well as the histopathological changes after stimulation. Methods: Thirty healthy adult male SD rats were selected and injected intraperitoneally with pilocarpine to establish a chronic temporal lobe epilepsy model. After a 2-week rest period, rats that exhibited spontaneous epileptic seizures were considered successfully modeled. The rats were randomly divided into three groups: the new cortical stimulator group, the traditional cortical stimulator group, and the control group, with 10 rats in each group. A hole was drilled at the frontal-parietal landmark (2 mm posterior to the bregma, 3 mm lateral to the midline), and cranial electrodes were implanted and fixed with dental cement. After a one-week rest period, electrical stimulation was performed. The control group only had electrodes implanted without stimulation. Video recording was used to monitor the process, and the time and threshold required for stimulation to induce unilateral forelimb convulsion were recorded. Nissl staining was used to observe hippocampal neuronal damage, and the number of positive neurons in the CA3 region of the hippocampus was counted. Results: The seizure threshold of the new cortical stimulator group was significantly lower than that of the traditional cortical stimulator group (P < 0.05). The time from the start to the end of stimulation in the new device group was significantly shorter than that in the traditional stimulator group (P < 0.05). There was no statistically significant difference in the number of positive neurons in the hippocampal CA3 region among the three groups (P > 0.05). Conclusion: Compared with the traditional cortical stimulator, the new cortical stimulator can achieve the focal seizure threshold with lower stimulation parameters, improving stimulation efficiency and reducing the time required for the examination. Neither of the two types of cortical electrostimulation devices caused significant damage to the hippocampus during the stimulation process.