TEMPORAL LOBE EPILEPSY

   A high incidence of temporal lobe epilepsy is found in autism (Carracedo et al, 1995; Gillberg et al, 1986).

   Russian studies examining the serum levels of thyroid hormones in 70 patients with temporal epilepsy showed that in 53 patients the hormonal activity of the thyroid appeared to be lowered, while in 17 patients it was increased. More unfavourable variants of the epilepsy were found to be associated with subclinical hypothyrosis (Shutov, 1982).

   Earlier Prostakova (1981) had found that clinical characteristics of temporal lobe epilepsy depend on thyroid function.

    After thyroid hormone replacement therapy  the epileptic paroxysms either disappeared or their frequency was reduced, significant normalization of the EEG and iodine metabolism, and improvement in the mental state of the patients were shown. (Shutov et al, 1979)

   There is also temporal lobe enlargement in autistic individuals. Various authors (Bachevalier, 1994; Hoon et al, 1992) have proposed that a developmental lesion in the medial temporal lobe, and more specifically the amygdala, may be a cause of autism.

    Hypothyroidism causes increased levels of mRNAs is the amygdala (Alvarez-Dolado et al, 2000; Cai et al, 2000).

  It was found that G(o)alpha mRNA levels in the brain of 14-day-old rats significantly increased over 3-fold after induction of perinatal hypothyroidism, and declined markedly after treatment of thyroxine replacement (Cai et al, 2000).

Also see: NSE , ERP

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Alvarez-Dolado M, Cuadrado A, Navarro-Yubero C, Sonderegger P, Furley AJ, Bernal J, Munoz A - "Regulation of the L1 cell adhesion molecule by thyroid hormone in the developing brain" Mol Cell Neurosci 16(4):499-514  (2000) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbin-post/Entrez/query?uid=11085884&form=6&db=m&Dopt=r

Bachevalier J -"Medial temporal lobe structures and autism: a review of clinical and experimental findings" Neuropsychologia 32(6):627-48 (1994) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbin-post/Entrez/query?db=m&form=6&uid=8084420&Dopt=r

Cai D, Su Q, Chen Y, Luo M - "Effect of thyroid hormone deficiency on developmental expression of goalpha gene in the brain of neonatal rats by competitive RT-PCR and in situ hybridization histochemistry" Brain Res 864(2):195-204  (2000)
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbin-post/Entrez/query?uid=10802026&form=6&db=m&Dopt=r

Carracedo A, Martin Murcia F, Garcia Penas JJ, Ramos J, Cassinello E, Calvo MD - "Autistic syndrome associated with refractory temporal epilepsy" Rev Neurol 23(124):1239-41  (1995) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbin-post/Entrez/query?uid=8556628&form=6&db=m&Dopt=r

Gillberg C, Persson E, Wahlstrom J - "The autism-fragile-X syndrome
(AFRAX): a population-based study of ten boys" J Ment Defic Res 30 ( Pt 1):27-39 (1986) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbin-post/Entrez/query?uid=3701848&form=6&db=m&Dopt=r

Hoon AH Jr, Reiss AL -" The mesial-temporal lobe and autism:case-report and review"Dev Med Child Neurol 34(3):252-9(1992) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbin-post/Entrez/query?db=m&form=6&uid=8919716&Dopt=r

Prostakova TI, Pustokahnova IV, Agafonova EI - "Clinical characteristics of temporal lobe epilepsy depending on the thyroid function" Sov Med (7):96-9 (1981) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbin-post/Entrez/query?uid=7292131&form=6&db=m&Dopt=r

Shutov AA, Prostakova TI - "Clinical features of temporal lobe epilepsy and the functional state of the thyroid" Zh Nevropatol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova 82(6):49-53
(1982) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbin-post/Entrez/query?uid=6180575&form=6&db=m&Dopt=r

Shutov AA, Pleshkova NM, Prostakova TI - "Correction of the hormonal activity of the thyroid gland as a  method of pathogenetic therapy in the complex treatment of temporal lobe epilepsy" Zh Nevropatol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova 79(8):1016-20  (1979) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbin-post/Entrez/query?uid=484134&form=6&db=m&Dopt=r