Oxcarbazepine is a nicotinic acetylcholine receptor channel blocker

VALLÉS, A.S.; BARRANTES, FJ.

Florencia

Congreso; 8th IBRO World Congress of Neuroscience; 2011

IBRO

Oxcarbazepine is a Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Channel Blocker Vallés, Ana Sofía and Barrantes, Francisco José. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Bahía Blanca, Universidad Nacional del Sur and UNESCO Chair of Biophysics and Molecular Neurobiology, BZW800 Bahia Blanca, Argentina. Oxcarbazepine is an anticonvulsive and mood-stabilizing drug, used in the treatment of some forms of epilepsy. The effect of oxcarbazepine on the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChR) was assayed using the single-channel recording patch-clamp technique. The main effects caused by the drug were a concentration-dependent decrease in channel mean open time, an increase in one of the components of the mean burst duration, Tburst, concomitant with a decrease in the duration of the second Tburst component, and the appearance of a new closed-channel component. The duration of the latter remained constant in the range of concentrations tested, although its relative contribution showed concentration-dependent behavior. It is concluded that oxcarbazepine blocks the AChR channel, allowing it to reopen quickly, through a mechanism compatible with that of channel blockers.