Pericyte PDGFRB Signaling During Seizures: Characterization Of A New Mechanism Of Disease

Seizures remain difficult to control in a significant percentage of patients. Increasing evidence indicates that epilepsy can be caused by vascular disease in the brain and that abnormal neuronal activity is linked to blood vessel dysfunction in the brain. Targeting the damaged brain vasculature could represent a therapeutic approach to end seizures. We propose that a key brain vasculature receptor called PDGFRb regulates the brain’s blood flow response to seizures, and we will explore whether modulation of the receptor using specific medications can stop seizures.