Attenuation of epilepsy-induced brain damage in the temporal cortices of rats by exposure to LTP-patterned magnetic fields

To test the feasibility that whole body exposure to structurally matched, physiologically patterned magnetic fields could reduce cellular injury within specific regions of the brain, young rats were seized with lithium and pilocarpine and then exposed to a sham field or to one of three computer-generated magnetic field patterns. They were digitized equivalents of the pulsed patterns of electric current known to produce long-term potential (LTP) in slices of hippocampus or entorhinal cortices. Histological analyses of their brains as adults indicated the earlier exposure to the LTP-patterned fields produced a robust reduction of damage within the primary and association areas of the right temporal cortices and the CA1/CA2 hippocampal fields. The results suggest physiologically patterned magnetic fields could be employed to target specific nuclei anywhere within the brain by matching intrinsic activity.