Altered hippocampal activation in seizure-prone CACNA2D2 knockout mice.

Calcium channel α2δ subunits play important roles in controlling neuronal circuit structure and function, and mutation of the α2δ-2 isoform of this protein is associated with spontaneous seizures. In this study, we find that seizures in α2δ-2 mutant mice involve altered hippocampal activation without substantial histopathological changes in hippocampal structure. This suggests that the differences in seizure-associated hippocampal function are likely due to altered functional properties of the network as well as to the contribution of additional brain regions to seizures in mice lacking this protein.