Genetic differences in the time course for the development and persistence of the anticonvulsant effects of carbamazepine against cocaine seizures.

Initial studies of the effect of chronic carbamazepine (CBZ) against cocaine-induced seizures indicated that there were genetic differences in both the time course for the development of the anticonvulsant effects of CBZ against cocaine-induced seizures and the persistence of these effects. The present studies were initiated to investigate the time course for the development and persistence of the anticonvulsant effects of chronic CBZ against cocaine seizures in BALB/cByJ, C57Bl/6J and SJL/J mice. The anticonvulsant actions of CBZ were dependent on the duration of CBZ administration, requiring 4-7 days to achieve maximal efficacy. However, once the anticonvulsant effects of CBZ were manifest, the effect persisted for up to 5 days after stopping CBZ treatment depending on the genotype. The levels of CBZ and its active epoxide metabolite were determined in plasma and brain at various time points during and after chronic CBZ treatment. The levels of CBZ and CBZ-10,11-epoxide were substantially reduced over the course of treatment in all three strains, such that the levels of the two compounds in plasma and brain could not account for the decreased susceptibility to cocaine seizures observed following chronic CBZ. These results suggest that the effects of CBZ on cocaine seizures are mediated by relatively long-term changes in one or more biological systems associated with cocaine's convulsant effects.