The addition of a lipid-rich dietary supplement eliminates seizure-like activity and paralysis in the drosophila bang sensitive mutants.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect that a diet supplemented with KetoCal 4:1, a commercially available dietary formula consisting of a 4:1 ratio of fats to carbohydrates plus proteins, had on the seizure-like activity (SLA) and paralysis normally exhibited by the Drosophila Bang-sensitive (BS) paralytic mutants following mechanical shock. METHODS: Given that dietary changes are known to reduce seizures in humans and animal models, three BS mutants, easily-shocked (eas), bang-senseless (parabss), and technical knockout (tko), were fed a standard cornmeal/yeast/sugar diet supplemented with 10% KetoCal 4:1 (KetoCal-sup diet). Newly eclosed BS flies were fed this diet for 3-7 days and the effect this had on SLA, paralysis, locomotor activity, triglyceride levels, and glucose levels was examined. RESULTS: All three genotypes displayed significant reductions in SLA and BS sensitivity following mechanical shock. After only 3 days on the diet, 95% of tko flies no longer exhibited SLA or paralysis, and near complete suppression of the BS phenotype was seen by day 7. In the case of eas, there was a 78% reduction of SLA after 3 days on the diet and SLA was completely suppressed by day 7. The parabss flies showed a similar but less robust reduction of SLA on the diet as there was only a 68% reduction of SLA and paralysis following 7 days on the diet. The diet did not suppress activity globally as tko flies had increased basal locomotor activity on the diet while the parabss and eas flies showed no significant change in basal activity. The KetoCal-sup diet did not significantly alter the triglyceride levels or the total glucose levels in the BS mutants. In addition, the SLA and BS suppression was maintained even when the BS mutants were transitioned back to a standard fly diet. CONCLUSIONS: The SLA and paralysis associated with the Drosophila BS phenotype can be effectively suppressed by transient exposure to a KetoCal-sup diet. This suppression was not dependent upon long term maintenance of the diet and it was not associated with alterations in total glucose or triglyceride levels in these flies.

Paralysis of undetermined origin in bobwhite quail.

Paralysis of undetermined etiology occurred in a group of pen-reared bobwhite quail. Other than severe dehydration, no gross or microscopic lesions were observed, and the cause was not identified. Fumonisin B1 was detected in the feed at 17.7 ppm. In an attempt to reproduce the condition, a feeding trial was conducted utilizing the suspect feed. The feeding trial was not successful in reproducing the symptoms observed in the field case.

Dieting and peroneal nerve palsy.

In seven patients, peroneal nerve palsies developed while they were on weight-reduction diets. Five palsies were unilateral; two, bilateral. All patients recovered following diet modification. Therapeutic weight loss, of itself, can cause foot-drop. The prognosis is uniformly good.