Digital Health
Background
Understanding how seizures start and spread in the brain is key to improving diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy. Until now, detailed molecular studies have mostly relied on brain tissue removed during surgery or after death, offering only a limited snapshot of brain activity.
Research
FutureNeuro researchers, together with international partners, have developed a new method called MoPEDE (Multimodal Profiling of Epileptic brain activity via Explanted Depth Electrodes).
In patients undergoing surgery for epilepsy, electrodes are implanted to locate where seizures begin. In this study, the team showed they could recover high-quality RNA and DNA from these electrodes after they are removed. By combining these molecular “fingerprints” with brain activity recordings and imaging data, the team could map patterns of gene activity, chemical modifications to DNA, and genetic variants in seizure onset zones and surrounding brain regions.
This revealed differences in biological processes between areas that start seizures, those that spread seizures, and unaffected regions, revealing differences in processes like cell metabolism, inflammation, and cell communication.
Potential Impact
MoPEDE offers a minimally invasive way to study the living human brain at high resolution. The approach could improve surgical planning, help identify new biomarkers, and deepen understanding of how different forms of epilepsy develop. It may also be applied to other neurological disorders in the future.
Read the full publication here
