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Event-related potential (P300): the effects of levetiracetam in cognitive performance

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Abstract

Background

The current study is a reanalysis in the time domain of EEG data collection in healthy adults during an oddball paradigm using levetiracetam (LEV) vs. placebo acute administration. Specifically, the event-related potential (ERP) technique provides a tool for exploring the EEG responses to a specific event/stimulus. One of the ERP components widely studied is the P300 component, which is associated with the last stage of information processing and a general measurement of “cognitive efficiency.”

Methods

The sample was composed of thirteen healthy right-handed individuals randomized to participate under two conditions: LEV and placebo. Electrophysiological measures were collected before and after drug intake. We explored the oddball paradigm, which is commonly used with healthy individuals to investigate the stages of information processing.

Results

The electrophysiological results showed a main effect of condition on P300 amplitude for the frontal (F3, Fz, F4), central (C3, Cz, C4), and parietal electrodes (P3, Pz, P4). The post hoc comparisons (Scheffé’s test) demonstrated the significant differences between electrodes. Regarding P300 latency, all regions represented a main effect of condition. A P300 latency reduction was observed during LEV condition compared with placebo.

Conclusion

Our study observed the ERP component—P300—through the variation of its amplitude and latency to evaluate a supposed higher CNS efficiency when participants were under the LEV effect. Our findings sustain this premise, mainly due to reducing in P300 latency for the LEV condition, supporting the neural efficiency hypothesis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Brain Mapping and Sensory Motor Integration, Institute of Psychiatry of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (IPUB/UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

    Mariana Gongora, Eduardo Nicoliche, Julio Magalhães, Renan Vicente, Juliana Bittencourt & Pedro Ribeiro

  2. Institute of Applied Neuroscience (INA), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Eduardo Nicoliche, Bruna Velasques & Pedro Ribeiro

  3. Neurophysiology and Neuropsychology of Attention, Institute of Psychiatry of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (IPUB/UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Eduardo Nicoliche, Bruna Velasques & Pedro Ribeiro

  4. School of Physical Education and Sports, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Eduardo Nicoliche, Bruna Velasques & Pedro Ribeiro

  5. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Eduardo Nicoliche

  6. Brain Mapping and Functionality Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba, Piauí, Brazil

    Silmar Teixeira & Pedro Ribeiro

  7. Brain Mapping and Functionality Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba, Brazil

    Victor Hugo Bastos

  8. Laboratory of Physical therapy - Veiga de Almeida University of Rio de Janeiro (UVA/RJ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Juliana Bittencourt

  9. Biomedical Engineering Program, COPPE, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Mauricio Cagy

  10. Laboratory of Psychophysiology, Faculdade da Saúde, UMESP, São Paulo, Brazil

    Luis F. Basile

  11. Faculty of Human Sciences, Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    Henning Budde

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  1. Mariana Gongora
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Correspondence to Eduardo Nicoliche.

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Gongora, M., Nicoliche, E., Magalhães, J. et al. Event-related potential (P300): the effects of levetiracetam in cognitive performance. Neurol Sci 42, 2309–2316 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-020-04786-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-020-04786-8

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