Do the basal ganglia inhibit seizure activity in temporal lobe epilepsy?

Abstract

There is substantial evidence in the literature that the basal ganglia (BG), namely the striatum and pallidum, are involved in temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). The BG are probably not involved in elaborating clinical seizures, as they do not produce specific epileptiform activity and there is no evident change in the electrical activity in the BG immediately after seizure onset. The data we obtained by direct ictal recording in the BG [1,2], as well as a large body of experimental and clinical evidence reported by other groups, suggest an inhibitory role of the BG during temporal lobe seizures. The BG may have a remote influence on cortical oscillatory processes related to control of epileptic seizures via their feedback pathways to the cortex.