Basic and preclinical epilepsy research Scientists' perception of clinical epileptology

Marco de Curtis; Melody Asukile; Giulia Battaglia; Annabelle Sellin; Esper Cavalheiro; Marian Galovic; Jennifer N Gelinas; Akio Ikeda; Manisha Patel; Piero Perucca; Heidrun Potschka; Luisa Rocha; Chahnez Triki; Jo M Wilmshurst; William Gaillard; Francesco Deleo; Fernando Cendes; J Helen Cross; Aristea S Galanopoulou; Research & Innovation Task Force of the ILAE

doi:10.1111/epi.18186

Basic and preclinical epilepsy research Scientists' perception of clinical epileptology

Epilepsia. 2024 Nov 28. doi: 10.1111/epi.18186. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Marco de Curtis¹, Melody Asukile², Giulia Battaglia¹, Annabelle Sellin³, Esper Cavalheiro⁴, Marian Galovic⁵, Jennifer N Gelinas⁶, Akio Ikeda⁷, Manisha Patel⁸, Piero Perucca⁹, Heidrun Potschka¹⁰, Luisa Rocha¹¹, Chahnez Triki¹², Jo M Wilmshurst¹³, William Gaillard¹⁴, Francesco Deleo¹, Fernando Cendes¹⁵, J Helen Cross¹⁶, Aristea S Galanopoulou¹⁷; Research & Innovation Task Force of the ILAE

Affiliations

¹ Epilepsy Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan, Italy.
² School of Medicine, University of Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia.
³ International League Against Epilepsy.
⁴ Departamento de Neurologia e Neurocirurgia, Universidade Federal de São Paulo/Escola Paulista de Medicina, Brazil.
⁵ Department of Neurology, Clinical Neuroscience Center, University Hospital and University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
⁶ Department of Neurology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA.
⁷ Epilepsy Department, Movement Disorders and Physiology, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
⁸ Pharmaceutical Sciences Department, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Anschutz, Colorado, USA.
⁹ Department of Medicine (Austin Health), Department of Neurology, The University of Melbourne, and Bladin-Berkovic Comprehensive Epilepsy Program, Heidelberg, Victoria, Australia.
¹⁰ Institute of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany.
¹¹ Pharmacobiology Department. Center for Research and Advanced Studies, Mexico City, Mexico.
¹² Child Neurology Department, Hedi Chaker Hospital, University of Sfax, Sfax, Tunisia.
¹³ Paediatric Neurology Department, Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital, Neuroscience Institute, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
¹⁴ Division of Epilepsy and Neurophysiology, Department of Pediatric Neurology, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC, USA.
¹⁵ Department of Neurology, University of Campinas-UNICAMP, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil.
¹⁶ Neuroscience Unit, University College London NIHR BRC Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College, London, UK.
¹⁷ Saul R. Korey Department of Neurology, Dominick P. Purpura Department of Neuroscience, Isabelle Rapin Division of Child Neurology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, USA.

PMID: 39607361
DOI: 10.1111/epi.18186

Abstract

The interaction between basic science epilepsy researchers and clinical epileptologists is a longstanding issue. Efforts to provide opportunities for a dialogue between preclinical and clinical epilepsy professionals are crucial to reduce the knowledge gap between them and improve the translational success of neurobiology-based research. The International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) Research and Innovation Task Force circulated a survey to investigate the need for an update on new clinical epilepsy concepts within the basic science community. The 336 respondents included basic scientists (BS), preclinical scientists (PCSs), and/or clinical scientists (CSs). The majority of the 237 BSs/PCSs were engaged in preclinical studies in translational epilepsy research and declared translational research as a priority research interest. Fewer respondents from low-middle-income countries than from upper-middle or high-income countries (40.7% vs 65%) considered translational research a critical aspect of their research. A broad understanding of both clinical and neurobiological aspects of epilepsy was declared by 48% of BSs/PCSs; 96% of CSs declared a superficial knowledge of neurobiology of epilepsy. Most BSs/PCSs were aware that epilepsy is a complex condition that should be investigated with the help of clinical epileptologists, even though concerns were expressed on the relationship with clinicians. A focused training program on emerging clinical epileptological aspects tailored for BSs/PCSs was recommended by 81% of the participants; the majority of respondents preferred either 1- or 2-week in-presence tutoring or continuous online training coordinated by ILAE at the regional/national level. The survey also underscored the value of educational programs on neurobiology of epilepsy targeting CSs and low-middle-income countries (LMIC) investigators.

Keywords: basic science; education; epilepsy; preclinical; training.