The Critical Role Of PPAR-gamma In Ketogenic Diet Efficacy

The Ketogenic Diet (KD) is an effective broad-spectrum therapy for epilepsy that is primarily used for medically refractory pediatric patients. Elucidating the critical mediator(s) of KD efficacy will further our understanding of the basic mechanisms of epilepsy and open new avenues of drug discovery. To this end, our recent findings implicate a regulator of gene expression called PPARgamma as a mediator of KD anti-seizure efficacy. Our proposed studies will test investigational drugs, determine relevant functional mechanisms and explore possible strategies of reducing the stringency of the KD, thereby bringing us closer to the ultimate goals of No Seizures/No Side Effects.