This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing theresources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject andinvestigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source,and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed isfor the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator.About 30% of patients with epilepsy are refractory to medical treatment (pharmacoresistant epilepsy). The cause of which is multifactorial. Multidrug resistance (MDR) causes decreased uptake of medicines in tissues. MDR occurs because of overexpression of a family of transporter proteins that act as a physiological defense mechanism that pumps toxins out of cells. Two groups of transporters, P-glycoprotein (PGP) and multidrug resistance-associated proteins (MRP), are important gatekeepers in the blood brain barrier. PGP and MRP are overexpressed in the brain tissue of pharmacoresistant patients with partial epilepsy and many antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) are substrates for PGP, MRP or both.It is logical to try to apply these observations to clinical practice. We hope that through co-administration of an inhibitor of transporter proteins, we can increase the CNS concentrations of AEDs, and subsequently improve seizure control. However, before this, it is critical to demonstrate that a transporter protein inhibitor can increase the concentration of AEDs in human brain.Probenecid is an MRP inhibitor while phenytoin is an MRP substrate. Evaluating whether probenecid can increase the CNS concentration of PHT can potentially be achieved noninvasively by using pharmaco-EEG.We hypothesize that we can enhance the distribution of phenytoin into the CNS of patients with pharmacoresistant epilepsy through co-administration of probenecid, a transporter protein inhibitor. We plan to recruit two groups of 10 subjects each, normal volunteers and patients with pharmacoresistant epilepsy. They will undergo two treatment regimens; EEG recording after administration of intravenous phenytoin only and again after pre-dosing them with probenecid.
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