Excitatory changes of rat perirhinal cortex by amygdala-kindling: a study with in vitro slice technique.

The perirhinal cortex (PRC) is one of the structures of the limbic system which is located near the rhinal fissure (Fig. 1). Kindling is a chronic animal model of epilepsy in which a periodic administration of initially subconvulsive electrical stimuli to a brain structure eventually leads to limbic and clonic motor seizures.’ It has recently been reported that PRC is one of the critical sites for the generation and propagation of kindled seizures. The local application of an NMDA antagonist, ~~-2-amino-5-phosphonova~eric acid (APV), to PRC completely blocked amygdala-kindled seizures.* McIntyre et al . reported the PRCkindling was developed much more rapidly than amygdaloid or pyriform cortical kindling which has previously been considered to be developed most rapidly: We have recently reported the characteristics of unique field potentials in the rat PRC in vitro.6 These potentials have a long duration (>200 ms) and high synchronism submitted to an all-or-none rule. The potentials are ,EPSPs which show suspended depolarization and re-