Abnormal Basal Ganglia Functional Connectivity in Idiopathic Generalized Epilepsy

The basal ganglia have been implicated in a modulation role in idiopathic generalized epilepsy （IGE） by an invasive electrophysioigic means. This paper investigates the basal ganglia functional connectivity by using the region-wise functional connection analysis in resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging （fMRI） in IGE. The increased functional connectivity within basal ganglia, and between the basal ganglia and the thalamus, and decreased functional connectivity between basal ganglia and motor cortex are found in IGE compared with the controls. These findings not only implicate dysfunctional integration in the motor loop in IGE and the enhanced interaction in the modulated loop, but also suggest that the basal ganglia modulate the generalized epileptic discharges with the influence over thalamus in the corticothalamus network.

Association between GABRG2 rs211037 polymorphism and idiopathic generalized epilepsies:a meta-analysis

Background:We performed this meta-analysis to investigate the association between GABRG2 rs211037polymorphism and the risk for idiopathic generalized epilepsies(IGEs).Methods:Medline,Embase,Cochrane Library and Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure(CNKI)databases were searched for eligible studies(until May 5,2020)on the association between GABRG2 rs211037 polymorphism and IGE.The odds ratios were calculated using a fixed or random model in STATA 15.0 software.Subgroup analyses for ethnicity,age,source of controls,type of seizure syndrome and therapeutic responses were conducted.Results:We found no significant associations between GABRG2 rs211037 polymorphism and the susceptibility to IGEs.In addition,no significant association was detected between GABRG2 rs211037 polymorphism and drug resistance in IGE patients.The results did not change after stratification by Asian population,healthy controls,children,juvenile myoclonic epilepsy,and childhood absence epilepsy.Conclusion:The current studies indicated that the GABRG2 rs211037 polymorphism was not related to susceptibility or drug resistance of IGE.Further well-designed studies are needed to verify the results.