Oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and epilepsy

Epilepsy is a common and heterogeneous neurological disorder arising from biochemical and molecular events that are incompletely understood. To effectively manage epilepsies, it is important to understand the mechanisms underlying both seizure-induced brain damage as well as seizure initiation. Oxidative stress is emerging as a mechanism that may play an important role in the etiology of seizure-induced neuronal death. Conversely, epileptic seizures are a common occurrence in mitochondrial diseases arising from defects in oxidative phosphorylation. This review focuses on the emerging role of oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction both as a consequence and cause of epileptic seizures.