Título: MicroRNA-134 as a target for the prevention and treatment of epilepsy

Dra. Cristina Ruedell Reschke, from Department of Physiology & Medical Physics, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland

Epilepsy is a common, serious neurological disease characterized by recurrent seizures. One-third of the epileptic patients are drug-refractory, becoming urgent the need of new approaches to the treatment and prevention of the pathology. Evidence has emerged that a class of small, non-coding RNA called microRNA (miRNA) is important in the pathogenesis and potential treatment of epilepsy. In the brain, miRNAs control synaptic strength, ion channels, neuroinflammation, apoptosis and glial function; processes dysregulated in epileptogenesis. Specifically, miRNA-134 plays a key role in brain excitability, considering that it is over-expressed in neocortex of patients with pharmacoresistant temporal lobe epilepsy. Silencing miR-134 in the mouse brain using intracerebroventricular injections of “antagomirs” potently suppressed evoked and spontaneous seizures in different experimental models of seizures and status epilepticus. Therefore, looking forward to obtaining clinical relevance, we have been currently testing systemic delivery of these large macromolecules.