Abstract:

Objective To investigate the effect of silencing connexin 43（Cx43）on the symptoms of epileptic mice as well as the glucose uptake of hippocampal astrocytes. Methods Mice were divided into sham operation group，epilepsy group，no⁃load group，and silencing Cx43 group. The brain waves were monitored and the average number of discharges per minute was counted，the expression of Cx43 mRNA in hippocampus was detected，the morphology and number of astrocytes were observed，and the duration and frequency of epilepsy were recorded. Astrocytes were divided into blank group，sh ⁃ Cx43 group，and NC group so that the positive rates of Cx43 protein expression and 2⁃deoxyglucose（2⁃NBDG）expression were detected across the three groups. Results The expression of Cx43 mRNA in the epilepsy group increased ，but that in the silence group significantly decreased compared with the model group（P < 0.05）. In the epilepsy group，glial fibrillary acidic protein（GPAP） positive cells increased and arranged disorderly，brain waves were epileptiform discharges and the average discharges per minutes increased. In the silencing Cx43 group，the GPAF positive cells and epileptiform discharges both increased in number，and so it was with the average discharges per minute and the onsets and duration of seizures （P < 0.05）. Compared with the blank group，the expression of Cx43 protein in the sh⁃Cx43 group was significantly lower，and the positive expression rate of 2⁃NBDG was significantly higher（P < 0.05）. Conclusion Silencing Cx43 can promote the glucose uptake capacity of astrocytes so that it exerts anti⁃epileptic effects by improving the 

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