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. 2020 Dec 23;11:626658. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2020.626658

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Copyright © 2020 Kinboshi, Ikeda and Ohno.

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

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Schematic drawing illustrating the effects of Kir4.1 dysfunction on neural hyperexcitation and astrocytic BDNF expression. Dysfunction (genetic mutation, down-regulated expression, and pharmacological blockade) of Kir4.1 channels increases extracellular K⁺ and glutamate at synapses and causes neural hyperexcitability. The dysfunction of Kir4.1 channels activates the Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK signaling pathway and facilitates BDNF expression in astrocytes. Based on these changes, astrocytic Kir4.1 channels play important roles in modulating seizure induction and epileptogenesis. Modified from Ohno et al. (25).