[The alterations in vasoactive intestinal polypeptide-immune reaction positive neurons of cerebral tissues in epileptic rats induced by penicillin].

To further explore the action of vasoactive intestinal polypeptide(VIP) in epileptogenesis, we made an immunocytochemical analysis and observed the alterations in VIP-energic neurons of the cerebral cortex, hippocampus and amygdaloid in rats. The animals were divided into three groups: the control, the epileptic group in which seizure was induced by injected Penicillin(PNC) intraperitoneally, and the nimodipline(NIM) group in which seizure was impressed by giving PNC after NIM, a dihydropyridine calcium entry blocker, was injected. The results showed that the number of neurons of epileptic group increased, compared with that of control group (P < 0.01), the neuronic number of the epileptic group was higher than that of the NIM group(P < 0.01), whereas there was no significant difference in neuronic number between the control group and the NIM group(P > 0.05). These suggest that VIP and Ca2+ participate in the process of epileptogenesis.