Developmental state can change the direction of an experimental response.
An organotypic neocortical-slice study followed development, intracellular chloride and spontaneous epileptiform activity. Diazepam’s anticonvulsant effect became more apparent with maturation, while some early slices showed worsening activity.
Culture age is not directly interchangeable with a human infant’s age. The preparation lacked intact circulation and metabolism, and the observations do not define a clinical neonatal regimen. Correlation with chloride did not establish every causal step.
State the preparation and developmental interval when discussing the paradoxical effect. The study supplies a possible mechanistic explanation, not proof that diazepam caused an individual infant’s seizures or that every neonatal exposure will have an excitatory effect.
Source: PMC4693588, supplied full-text paper. Findings are paraphrased; forensic implications are an interpretation.
Related: A Synthetic Cannabinoid Enhanced Clonazepam but Not Clobazam in One Mouse Seizure Model.