Studying how specialised brain cells influence epilepsy

Epilepsy affects millions worldwide, yet the precise mechanisms that trigger epilepsy, or recurring seizures, is still not fully understood. For years, scientists have focused mainly on neurons; the brain’s electrical messengers, as the key players.

Now, a research collaboration between Aston University and Cardiff University, supported by MCAST and the Xjenza Malta RNS programme, and led by Rhein Parri, Vincenzo Crunelli, and Francis Delicata, is turning the spotlight onto another vital group of brain cells: the astrocytes.

Astrocytes are star-shaped, sponge-like, support cells that help maintain balance in the brain’s environment. They control blood flow and influence how neurons communicate. The research work asks the fundamental question ‘What are these cells doing during seizures, and could they hold clues to better treatments for epilepsy?’.

To answer this, the team used a multidisciplinary approach that brought together neuroscience, optical physics and data science. Using two-photon laser scanning microscopy, the research team was able to peer deep inside the living brain, visualising calcium flashes that signal astrocyte activity.

At the same time, electrical recordings captured the brain’s rhythmic waves during absence seizures; brief, non-convulsive episodes similar to those seen in children suffering from Childhood Absence Epilepsy.

By combining these powerful techniques with complex image processing and frequency analysis, the researchers revealed how astrocytes behave during both normal behaviour and seizure activity. The results showed that these cells are far from passive, they respond dynamically to brain rhythms and during non-convulsive seizures.

This work highlights how astrocytes may play a more active role in epilepsy, offering a new direction for therapeutic research. It also demonstrates the strength of combining biology, engineering and computational analysis to explore the brain in action.

Offering a new direction for therapeutic research

If astrocytes are shown to help trigger or sustain absence seizures, therapies that target astrocyte signalling or their interaction with neurons could complement existing anticonvulsant drugs. That could lead to treatments that are more precise and have fewer side effects, which is particularly important for children with Childhood Absence Epilepsy.

The work suggests that astrocytes are active participants in the brain’s complex symphony, influencing how networks behave during both normal and abnormal rhythms. These findings add a new layer to our understanding of epilepsy.

Understanding how the brain’s astrocytes behave during seizures could eventually help us design better, more targeted treatments for epilepsy, but also for a range of other neurological conditions.

Francis Delicata is a post-doctoral neuroscientist whose research has explored brain-cell interactions in conditions such as addiction, epilepsy and Alzheimer’s disease. He is currently a senior research officer at the MCAST Applied Research and Innovation Centre, where he supports research initiatives and helps identify local and EU funding opportunities.

RECa2+PD project is financed by Xjenza Malta through the Research Networking Scheme (RNS-2024-024).

Photo of the week

Source: The Trustees of the British Museum

In the ancient Near East, illness was understood as a physical condition but also a spiritual affliction. The Late Babylonian diagnostic manual known as Sakikku (“all diseases”) demonstrates the detailed observations of the ashipu, or scholar-physicians. Dating to around the 6th century BC, this manual spans 40 tablets and includes a specific treatise on epilepsy, referred to as miqtu, or “the falling disease”. 

DID YOU KNOW?

•         Epilepsy has been known for thousands of years, with early descriptions found on ancient Mesopotamian tablets and Egyptian papyri. While early civilisations blamed evil spirits or divine forces, Hippocrates later proposed that epilepsy came from the brain, an idea far ahead of its time that laid the foundation for modern understanding.

•         Although the brain makes up only about 2% of our body weight, it consumes around 20% of the body’s energy at rest. During seizures, energy demand can skyrocket as neurons fire uncontrollably.

•         The brain contains roughly 86 billion neurons, more than the number of people on Earth!

•         Your brain is a web of trillions of connections. Some link neurons are just a fraction of a millimetre apart, while others stretch over a foot to connect distant regions. Key “hub” areas coordinate networks, coordinate thoughts, movement and memory. These connections constantly change, allowing learning, adaptation and recovery after injury.

•         Neurons can send electrical impulses at up to 250 miles per hour, faster than a Formula 1 car!

•         Your brain is mostly water; in fact, about 75% of the human brain is water, making hydration essential for thinking, memory and your mood.

For more trivia, see: www.um.edu.mt/think.