New Epilepsy Drug From Fatty Acids

Featured Article Academic Journal Main Category: Epilepsy Also Included In: Pediatrics / Children's Health;Neurology / Neuroscience Article Date: 22 Nov 2012 - 3:00 PST

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By pinpointing exactly which fatty acids in the ketogenic diet are effective in controlling seizures, the researchers, from University College London (UCL) and Royal Holloway, hope they will lead to new anti-epileptic treatments that offer the benefit of the diet without its side effects.

An early "in press" report of their work was published online in the journal Neuropharmacology on 20 November.

Professor Matthew Walker, of UCL's Institute of Neurology, speaks about the value of their findings in a press statement:

"Epilepsy affects over 50 million people worldwide and approximately a third of these people have epilepsy that is not adequately controlled by our present treatments. This discovery offers a whole new approach to the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsies in children and adults."

The diet often works but draws criticism because it can lead to significant side effects such as constipation, low blood sugar (hypoglycaemia), growth retardation and bone fractures.

While it is not clear exactly how the ketogenic diet works, scientists suggest it could be because it raises blood levels of medium straight chain fatty acids.

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New Epilepsy Drug From Fatty Acids