Regional Differences in Seizure Susceptibility in Cat Cortex

INTRODUCTION It is generally accepted that the modern era in knowledge concerning the epilepsies began with the writings of Hughlings Jackson. 1 To him, these disorders resulted from the sudden temporary excessive discharge of some highly unstable region of the brain leading to secondary discharge of healthy cells in other centers. He conceptualized regarding the diverse clinical patterns of epileptic phenomena by stating: According as the seat of the discharging lesion varies the symptoms of the paroxysm vary. These precepts of Jackson's, predicated upon the abnormal excitability of focally discrete collections of cells, have been expanded tremendously in recent years by the vast experience of Penfield and his associates. Penfield and Jasper state, in speaking of focal epilepsy: Theoretically, a seizure may originate in any ganglionic part of the central nervous system. However, there are zones of predilection, such as the cerebral cortex, and there are areas that are completely