Zinc and Copper
Zinc and Copper are micronurtrients that play essential role in several cellular functions. They are present in high concentration in brain regions such as hippocampus, olfactory bulb and hypothalamus. These trace elements accumulate in the synaptic vesicles, especially in areas like glutamatergic neurons and are co-released with neurotransmitters during normal synaptic events [25]. It has been suggested that alteration in the homeostasis of zinc in the brain may be associated with epilepsy although it is not confirmed whether this is responsible for the seizure episode. Clinical studies correlating epileptic episodes, AEDs and zinc levels report contradictory results and hence it is difficult to establish direct correlation of zinc levels with epilepsy [26]. Copper deficiency may cause seizures and its levels are higher when treated with AEDs probably due to formation of copper complexes by activation of AEDs. Though the correlation of zinc-copper ratio is not fully understood still some research theorize that seizure occurs when the ratio fall suddenly in the absence of taurine [15,24,26].