Anticonvulsant Effect of Celecoxib in Mice Induced by PTZ

The cyclooxygenases (COXs), the key enzymes that convert arachidonic acid to prostaglandins (PGs), have been implicated in physiological and pathophysiological functions in the CNS. NSAIDs (non-stesoidal anti-inflammatory drugs), COX inhibitors, are used largely to treat febrile condition, pain state and for prevention of and therapeutics of many diseases. However the role of PGs and NSAIDs in the seizure activity has been disputed. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of intraperitoneal injection of different doses of Celecoxib on PTZ-induced seizure threshold in mice. Mice were divided randomly into 9 groups: the first group received normal saline (i.p) (control group); the second group received carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) 0.5% (i.p) (vehicle group) and the next groups received respectively different doses of Celecoxib (1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 mg/kg b.wt. i.p) 45 minute before determination of seizure threshold induced by PTZ.Results showed that PTZ-induced seizure threshold in control mice was 34.75±1.54 mg/kg b.wt. Intraperitoneal injection of Celecoxib showed significant (P<0.05) increase of PTZ-induced seizure threshold in a dose dependently manner compared with control group. According to our results, Celecoxib has anticonvulsant effects on mice. Nevertheless, new studies must be carried out in order to determine the beneficial effects of NSAIDs in treatment of epilepsy.