Figure 1. Experimental outline.

The experimental outline is divided into 2 parts, pre-surgery and post-surgery, where the day of the stereotaxic surgery is regarded as day 0. About one week before the stereotaxic surgery (-8 and -7 day), the rats were trained for beam walking for the 1^st time (BW1). The next day, the rats received a telemetry implant (-6 day) and were allowed to rest for a few days before their 2^nd training session for beam walking and the pre-surgery EMG recording (-1 day, BW2, preS EMG). On the day of the surgery, they were divided into 4 groups: the sham group with saline injection, the KA group with kainic acid injection, the KA+TGB group with kainic acid injection and tiagabine i.p. injection, and the TGB group with tiagabine i.p. injection only. All rats were recorded for post-surgery EMG (postS EMG) immediately after they recovered from surgery. Another recording was conducted at 90 minutes, 7^th, 22^nd, 30^th, and 48^th hours after surgery for the sham and the KA group, while the KA+TGB and the TGB groups received another tiagabine i.p. injection at 90 minutes after surgery and recorded for EMG one hour later (1.30 h), and continued at the 7^th, 22^nd, 30^th, and 48^th hours post-surgery. At the 49^th hour post-surgery, all rats were tested in the 3^rd beam walking session and then sacrificed 3 days after the surgery. BW1 and BW2 are considered as pre-surgery BW testing. BW3 is considered as post-surgery testing. BW, beam walking; preS, pre-surgery; EMG, electromyography; sham, sham-operated; KA, kainic acid; KA+ TGB, kainic acid with tiagabine treatment; TGB, tiagabine only; i.p., intraperitoneal; h, hour; postS, post-surgery