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The FDA has approved a novel antiepileptic agent – topiramate (Topamax/Ortho-McNeil)-for the adjunctive treatment of adults with partial-onset seizures. Topiramate was identified by scientists at the National Institutes of Health during random screening of promising drug candidates, and was developed by the R.W. Johnson Pharmaceutical Research Institute. The drug blocks voltage-sensitive sodium channels, enhances the activity of the inhibitory neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), and blocks the action of the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate. It also inhibits carbonic anhydrase, although this may not contribute to anticonvulsant activity.

In five placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trials, topiramate significantly reduced the frequency of epileptic seizures, including refractory partial seizures. In dosage studies- topiramate given at 200, 400, 600, 800, and 1,000 mg per day-the 200-mg dose gave inconsistent results, and increasing the dose beyond 400 mg per day did not increase efficacy. One trial included 45 patients who received 400 mg/day; 44% responded with at least a 50% reduction in seizure frequency, compared with baseline. In a second trial, 35% of 23 patients who received the 400-mg/day dose showed a 50% reduction in seizure rate. By comparison, 24% of patients receiving the 200-mg/day dose showed a seizure reduction rate of about 27%, and approximately 36 to 46% of patients responded to 600, 800, and 1,000 mg/day with a 36 to 46% reduction in seizure rates (response generally decreased as the dosage was increased). Placebo patients showed little or no response, and often showed increases in seizure frequency. Based on overall clinical results, topiramate appears to be a more potent anticonvulsant than Warner Lambert’s gabapentin (with response rates of 22-26%) and GlaxoWellcome’s lamotrigine (seizure reduction, 25-36%).

Topiramate is given 50 mg/day initially, with a gradual increase during an 8-week titration period to a total of 400 mg/day in two divided doses. Oral bioavailability is about 80%, and food has no clinically significant effect on absorption. At dosages of 200 to 800 mg, serum concentrations are linearly dose related and there is not much intersubject variability. Plasma protein binding is less than 20%. Single-dose studies in healthy adults have revealed that the drug is about 20% metabolized, but with multiple dosing in patients taking other antiepileptic drugs, up to 50% of the dose is metabolized. Elimination is primarily renal, with 50 to 80% of the dose excreted as unchanged topiramate; elimination half-life is 20 to 30 hours. Age, gender, race, baseline seizure rate, and concomitant antiepileptic drugs do not appear to affect efficacy, although topiramate may interact with phenytoin (Dilantin/Warner Lambert) and carbamazepine (Tegretol/Novartis). Addition of topiramate to a regimen that includes phenytoin may require adjustment of the phenytoin dose; addition or withdrawal of phenytoin and/or carbamazepine to the topiramate regimen may require adjustment of the dose of topiramate.

At the 200- to 400-mg dose range, the most frequent adverse effects in clinical trials were psychomotor slowing (incidence about 17%), difficulty concentrating (8%), speech and language problems (about 6%), somnolence (30%), and fatigue (11-12%). These reactions were generally dose related. Similar side effects (although less frequent) were seen with lamotrigine and gabapentin. During clinical studies, 1.5% of topiramate-treated patients developed kidney stones, which represents a two- to fourfold increase over the normal rate of stone formation. This may be due to carbonic anhydrase inhibition, and is managed by increasing fluid intake. Another side effect thought to be related to carbonic anhydrase inhibition is paresthesia. Use of topiramate with other carbonic anhydrase inhibitors should be avoided. Approximately 11% of patients withdrew from clinical trials because of adverse events, primarily central nervous system (CNS) effects, paresthesias, and, at higher dosages, anorexia and weight loss.

Although topiramate has been approved only for adults, Johnson & Johnson is studying the drug in pediatric patients with epileptic disorders, including generalized seizures and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.

Epilepsy is a chronic neurologic disorder that may result from brain injury, developmental malformation, or a genetic abnormality. It is characterized by recurrent seizures caused by sudden, excessive electrical activity in the brain. Seizures are classified as generalized, in which the electrical discharge occurs throughout the brain, and partial onset, wherein the electrical activity is localized (in simple partial-onset seizures, consciousness is maintained; in complex partial, consciousness is altered). Epilepsy affects up to 1% of the population in industrialized countries, with the highest rates occurring in children and adolescents. Most seizures (60%) are complex partial or secondarily generalized, and 25 to 30% of these seizures are refractory to available therapy. But for every refractory patient, there is another patient who goes into remission on antiepileptic drug (AED) therapy and then, after a seizure-free period, remains in remission when antiepileptic drugs are withdrawn. This shows that epilepsy is not always a lifelong condition.

The most frequently prescribed antiepileptic drugs are phenytoin, carbamazepine, and valproate, although in the past few years a number of new antiepileptic drugs have been approved. These new drugs were developed following major advances in the understanding of neurotransmitters and their receptors, and most enhance the activity of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), the primary inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain. Some also inhibit glutamate, the major excitatory neurotransmitter. Blocking glutamate has not been very successful, but augmenting GABA activity has been quite effective.

Gamma-aminobutyric acid is present in an estimated 60 to 70% of all synapses in the brain. It is formed from glutamate by the enzyme glutamic acid decarboxylase. After synaptic release, GABA is taken up into nerve cells or glial cells. In the neuron, gamma-aminobutyric acid either is re-released or is broken down by GABA transaminase into succinic semialdehyde; in the glial cell, it is metabolized, along with glutamate, by glutamine synthetase to form the amino acid glutamine, which is then transported back to the neuron and used to synthesize more glutamate and gamma-aminobutyric acid. When released into the synapse, GABA can bind to two different receptor complexes, designated A and B. GABA-A binds gamma-aminobutyric acid, benzodiazepines, barbiturates, and neurosteroids. When GABA-A is activated, it increases the inward flow of chloride through the nerve cell membrane, which hyperpolarizes the membrane and inhibits neuronal firing. Compounds that increase GABAergic activity via the GABA-A receptor are anticonvulsants, and those that antagonize GABA-A are convulsants.

Neuropharmacologists have discovered several ways to enhance GABA-A receptor activity: direct stimulation, inhibition of gamma-aminobutyric acid metabolism, and reduction of neuronal and/or glial GABA reuptake. Blocking gamma-aminobutyric acid reuptake is an especially fruitful area for drug discovery, because there are at least four different GABA transport mechanisms that mediate gamma-aminobutyric acid reuptake in neurons and glial cells. These transporters show different distributions within the central nervous system (CNS); for example, one is prominent in the substantia nigra, an area that plays a crucial role in the development of seizures.

Antiepileptic Drugs and Their Primary Mechanisms of Action

One of the most promising gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) reuptake inhibitors is tiagabine (Gabitril/Abbott), a novel antiepileptic drug that will probably receive final FDA approval during the first quarter of this year. Developed by researchers at the Danish pharmaceutical company NovoNordisk, tiagabine is a nipecotic acid derivative with an attached lipophilic group that enables the drug to cross the blood-brain barrier. This “rationally” designed drug is a potent, selective, and specific inhibitor of GABA reuptake into presynaptic neurons and glial cells, particularly those in the substantia nigra and associated areas. It binds one of the GABA reuptake transporters and shows no significant affinity for dopamine, norepinephrine, histamine, adenosine, serotonin, glutamate, or acetylcholine sites-either receptors or reuptake transporters.

Tiagabine has shown broad activity against a range of seizure types, including drug- induced, electroshock-induced, light-induced, amygdala-kindled, and audiogenic. It is well tolerated and does not cause withdrawal effects, displace other drugs, or induce hepatic enzymes (although it is a target for enzyme inducers). It is rapidly and completely absorbed, with a half-life of 5 to 8 hours. Because tiagabine is highly effective for partial- onset seizures, it will be approved initially for the adjunctive treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondarily generalized seizures.

Other new antiepileptic drugs on the market or under investigation include valproate (Divalproex/Abbott), topiramate (Topamax/Ortho-McNeil), gabapentin (Neurontin/Warner Lambert), lamotrigine (Lamictal/Glaxo Wellcome), vigabatrin, oxcarbazepine, and levetiracetam. Valproic acid decreases the activity of the enzyme that degrades gamma-aminobutyric acid and increases the activity of the enzyme that generates GABA; topiramate enhances gamma-aminobutyric acid and inhibits glutamate; and gabapentin, which is structurally related to GABA, has a unique (and as yet poorly understood) influence on gamma-aminobutyric acid neurotransmission. Vigabatrin acts through the selective, irreversible inhibition of GABA transaminase, the enzyme responsible for the metabolism of gamma-aminobutyric acid. Oxcarbazepine was developed by modifying the chemical formula of carbamazepine to improve tolerability; it is at least as effective as its parent, but is better tolerated, has fewer drug interaction problems, induces fewer enzymes, and causes less skin allergy. Levetiracetam is an interesting new compound in clinical trial that appears to bind a specific receptor on nerve cell membranes. It shows a broad spectrum of anticonvulsant activity and has been particularly effective for partial seizures. It has a high therapeutic index and does not appear to interact with other antiepileptic drugs.

Lamotrigine is the first antiepileptic drug that was designed specifically to inhibit glutamate and its close cousin, aspartate. It blocks sodium channels and stabilizes the presynaptic neuronal membrane, inhibiting the release of glutamate and aspartate. It has a wide spectrum of antiepileptic activity, including partial-onset and primary generalized tonic-clonic seizures, and is particularly useful for mentally retarded patients. It is very well tolerated and does not alter concentrations of concomitant antiepileptic drugs or induce hepatic enzymes, although it is a target for enzyme induction. It interacts with both valproic acid (which approximately doubles the plasma elimination half-life of lamotrigine) and carbamazepine (concomitant lamotrigine/carbamazepine therapy can cause a potentially dangerous cerebellar toxic syndrome).

The understanding of epilepsy has advanced substantially in the past decade, and new antiepileptic drugs with novel mechanisms of action are continually being developed. Monotherapy is the goal-that is, the administration of one drug with a mechanism of action specific for the form of epilepsy being treated-but in clinical practice, polytherapy is often used. Using multiple drugs increases the risks of adverse effects and drug interactions, but the new GABAergics have such good safety profiles that “rational polytherapy” is a workable solution to what is often a very complex neurologic problem.