SHORT COMMUNICATION NICOTINE DIMINISHES ANTICONVULSANT ACTIVITY OF ANTIEPILEPTIC DRUGS IN MICE Miros³aw Czuczwar , Jacek Kiœ , Piotr Czuczwar , Marian Wielosz , Waldemar Turski Nicotine diminishes anticonvulsant activity of antiepileptic drugs in mice. M. CZUCZWAR, J. KIŒ, P. CZUCZWAR, M. WIELOSZ, W.A. TURSKI. Pol. J. Pharmacol., 2003, 55, 799–802. Nicotine administered acutely at subconvulsive dose of 4 mg/kg, signifi- cantly decreased the protective activity of valproate, carbamazepine, diphenyl- hydantoin, phenobarbital, topiramate and lamotrigine against maximal electro- shock-induced tonic convulsions in mice. The obtained data may suggest that interaction between nicotine and antiepileptic drugs should be carefully considered as a cause of the therapeutic failure in epileptic patients. Key words: nicotine, antiepileptic drugs, seizures correspondence; e-mail: turskiwa@asklepios.am.lublin.pl