Small molecule
PubChem CID 5284583
Levetiracetam
Keppra
- Mechanism of action
- Binds synaptic vesicle protein SV2A
- In plain language
- Sticks to a protein inside brain cells' chemical-messenger pouches, calming the excess electrical activity that triggers seizures.
- How it works
- Levetiracetam binds with high affinity to synaptic vesicle glycoprotein 2A (SV2A), a protein on presynaptic vesicles throughout the CNS believed to regulate vesicle exocytosis and neurotransmitter release. By modulating SV2A, it is thought to dampen synchronized, hyperexcitable neuronal firing, without the direct sodium/calcium channel blockade or GABA-enhancing action seen in most older antiepileptics. Across levetiracetam analogs, SV2A binding affinity correlates with antiseizure potency in animal seizure models, supporting SV2A as the relevant target, though the precise molecular link between binding and seizure suppression is not fully established.
- Therapeutic applications
- Indicated for the treatment of partial-onset seizures in patients 1 month of age and older, as adjunctive therapy for myoclonic seizures in patients 12 years of age and older with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy, and as adjunctive therapy for primary generalized tonic-clonic seizures in patients 6 years of age and older with idiopathic generalized epilepsy.
- Class
- Small molecule
- Therapeutic area
- CNS / Neurology
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