Tackling a single gene could be the key to new treatments for epilepsy, British researchers revealed today.
The gene is responsible for coordinating a network of some 400 genes that contribute to the disease, researchers said.
The findings come from a study of brain tissue donated by some 129 people, analysed at Imperial College, London.
Further analysis took place using laboratory mice and zebrafish.
Researchers said they had used a technique called systems genetics, aimed at discovering how genes work together.
The gene is known as Sestrin 3 – or SESN3 – and has never been linked to epilepsy before. The findings were reported in the journal Nature Communications.
Dr Enrico Petretto said: "We are currently undertaking further research to better understand how SESN3 controls the epileptic gene network and, more importantly, how we can modify it to treat epilepsy.
"We are also planning to broaden the applications of our systems genetics approach to other disorders of the human brain, such as Alzheimer’s disease and neurodevelopmental disorders."
Fellow researcher Dr Michael Johnson added: "Existing epilepsy medications are symptomatic treatments only; that is they act to supress the seizures but they don’t treat the underlying disease.
"Consequently, we find that existing medications don’t work in about one-third of people with epilepsy. Here we have taken a new approach, and identified a network of genes underlying the epilepsy itself in these patients and mapped its control to a single gene, SESN3.
"This offers hope that new disease-modifying therapies can be developed for the treatment of epilepsy itself."
Johnson, M. et al. Systems-Genetics identifies Sestrin 3 as a regulator of a proconvulsant gene network in human epileptic hippocampus. Nature Communications 26 January 2015; doi: 10.1038/ncomms7031.
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