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Idiopathic Epilepsy Of Childhood And Potassium Ion Channels, Alper I. Dai, Mohammad Wasay

Department of Medicine

Potassium can affect the development of common seizure type and can be defined seizure susceptibility allele. The existence of inward-rectifying potassium (Kir) channels was first recognized half a century ago. The biophysical fingerprint of Kir channels is inward rectification in the current-voltage relationship , which limits potassium efflux at depolarizing membrane potentials. Kir channels are essential in the control of resting membrane potential, coupling of the metabolic cellular state with membrane excitability, and maintenance of potassium homeostasis. The critical interval contains several candidate genes, one of which, KCNJ10, exhibits a potentially important polymorphism with regard to fundamental aspects of seizure …