GABAergic drugs in the treatment of epilepsy: modern or outmoded?

Abstract

Antiepileptic drugs have a number of mechanisms of action that target brain excitability systems. The potentiation of GABAergic inhibitory neurotransmission represents a classic and well-known antiseizure effect. Currently available GABAergic antiepileptic drugs mainly target GABAA receptor-associated complexes, GABA reuptake or GABA catabolism. All these compounds, although generally effective, are limited by their deleterious effects on cognition and behavior. The challenge will be to find GABAergic drugs that exhibit the beneficial effects, without the adverse ones.