Seizures are complex pathological network events characterized by excessive and hypersynchronized activity of neurons, including a highly diverse population of GABAergic interneurons. Although the primary function of inhibitory interneurons under normal conditions is to restrain excitation in the brain, this system appears to fail intermittently, allowing runaway excitation. Recent developments in optogenetics, combined with genetic tools and advanced electrophysiological and imaging techniques, allow us for the first time to assess the causal roles of identified cell-types in network dynamics. While these methods have greatly increased our understanding of cortical microcircuits in epilepsy, the roles played by individual GABAergic cell-types in controlling ictogenesis remain incompletely resolved. Indeed, the ability of interneurons to suppress epileptic discharges varies across different subtypes, and an accumulating body of evidence paradoxically implicates some interneuron subtypes in the initiation and maintenance of epileptiform activity. Here, we bring together findings from this growing field and discuss what can be inferred regarding the causal role of different GABAergic cell-types in seizures.

中文翻译：

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癫痫发作中的 GABA 能中间神经元：用光遗传学研究因果关系。

癫痫发作是复杂的病理网络事件，其特征是神经元过度和超同步活动，包括高度多样化的 GABA 能中间神经元群。尽管正常情况下抑制性中间神经元的主要功能是抑制大脑中的兴奋，但该系统似乎会间歇性地失效，从而导致兴奋失控。光遗传学的最新发展，结合遗传工具和先进的电生理学和成像技术，使我们首次能够评估已识别细胞类型在网络动力学中的因果作用。虽然这些方法大大增加了我们对癫痫皮质微电路的理解，但单个 GABA 能细胞类型在控制 ictogenesis 中所起的作用仍未完全解决。确实，中间神经元抑制癫痫放电的能力因不同亚型而异，而且越来越多的证据矛盾地暗示某些中间神经元亚型在癫痫样活动的启动和维持中。在这里，我们汇集了这个不断发展的领域的研究结果，并讨论了可以推断出不同 GABA 能细胞类型在癫痫发作中的因果作用。