Sodium valproate is an effective drug for epilepsy, but its consumption is not recommended during pregnancy
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The drug rapamycin may prevent the epilepsy drug sodium valproate from causing developmental problems during pregnancy.
Sodium valproate is used to treat epilepsy, bipolar disorder, and sometimes migraines. Although effective, it is not recommended during pregnancy as it can cause birth defects such as spina bifida and lifelong learning disabilities.
Giovanni Pietrogrande Researchers from the University of Queensland in Australia wanted to understand why sodium valproate could have such an effect. So they used stem cells to create mini-spinal cords called organoids in the lab. These mimic the spine of a fetus during early pregnancy.
When organoids were exposed to sodium valproate, their cells changed in ways that may be associated with risk of congenital disease.
The researchers looked for reasons for this and found that activity in one of the cell's signaling pathways, called mTOR, indicates that cells are aging. This is a process in which cells stop growing but do not die, but instead continue to release chemicals that can cause inflammation.
Rapamycin, which was initially developed as an immunosuppressant but has some promise for anti-aging effects, also targets the mTOR pathway.
In another experiment, researchers exposed a new set of spinal cord organoids to a combination of sodium valproate and rapamycin and found that no aging occurred. They then replicated this test in zebrafish larvae and found that the cells similarly did not undergo senescence and showed no signs of the changes that occur when exposed to sodium valproate alone.
Rather than doctors discontinuing sodium valproate if an epileptic patient is pregnant or may become pregnant, someday doctors may be able to prevent the negative effects of sodium valproate by combining it with rapamycin. Pietro Grande says. Human studies are needed to make this recommendation.
Frank Vajda The University of Melbourne says sodium valproate is “a critically important drug and the single most effective treatment for generalized seizures, where abnormal electrical activity begins in both halves of the brain at the same time.”
“I think this is a very important paper that could lead to a return to the level of importance that this drug had before its side effects were discovered,” he says.
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Source: www.newscientist.com
