Amy R. Brooks-Kayal, M.D., F.A.A.N., F.A.N.A., F.A.E.S.
Chair, Department of Neurology
Professor, Department of Neurology
To see if Amy R. Brooks-Kayal is accepting new patients, or for assistance finding a UC Davis doctor, please call 800-2-UCDAVIS (800-282-3284).
Locations and Contact
Philosophy of Care
I am amazed by the resilience, strength and positive attitude of the kids I take care of. They do not let their illness define them. I follow this philosophy in treating them as kids first. I see my role as providing knowledge, compassion and innovation that will enhance their quality of life.
Clinical Interests
Dr. Brooks-Kayal specializes in the care of children and teens with difficult to manage or complex epilepsy.
Research/Academic Interests
For Patients:
Dr. Brooks-Kayal's research focuses on understanding how seizures effect the brain and on development of novel treatments for the prevention, treatment and cure of epilepsy.
For Referring Providers:
Dr. Brooks-Kayal's research focuses on the effects of seizure activity on neurotransmitter systems with particular emphasis on understanding the molecular regulation of GABA(A) receptor expression during epileptogenesis and development of novel therapeutics for the prevention, treatment and cure of epilepsy.
Division
Neurology
Undergraduate School
B.A., Cornell University, College of Arts and Sciences, Ithaca NY 1984
Undergraduate School
M.D., Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore MD 1988
Internship
Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia PA 1989
Residency
Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia PA 1989-1991
Residency
Child Neurology, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia PA 1992-1995
Fellowship
Charles A. Dana Fellow in Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania/Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Program, Clinical Neurophysiology, Philadelphia PA 1991-1992
International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) Ambassador for Epilepsy, 2021
Founders' Award, American Epilepsy Society, 2019
Sara Hertafeld Memorial Lecturer, University of Rochester, 2019
Swebilius Award in Epilepsy from Yale University, 2018
Co-Chair, Gordon Research Conference on Epilepsy and Neuronal Synchronization, Mt. Snow, Vermont, 2018
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=brooks-kayal+a
Hixson KM, Cogswell M, Brooks-Kayal AR, Russek SJ. Evidence for a non-canonical JAK/STAT signaling pathway in the synthesis of the brain's major ion channels and neurotransmitter receptors. BMC Genomics. 2019 Aug 28;20(1):677. doi:10.1186/s12864-019-6033-2. PMID:31455240.
Carvill GL, Dulla CG, Lowenstein DH, Brooks-Kayal AR. The path from scientific discovery to cures for epilepsy. Neuropharmacology. 2020 May 1;167:107702. doi:10.1016/j.neuropharm.2019.107702. Epub 2019 Jul 10. PMID:31301334.
Li Z, Cogswell M, Hixson K, Brooks-Kayal AR, Russek SJ. Nuclear Respiratory Factor 1 (NRF-1) Controls the Activity Dependent Transcription of the GABA-A Receptor Beta 1 Subunit Gene in Neurons. Front Mol Neurosci. 2018 Aug 21;11:285. doi:10.3389/fnmol.2018.00285. PMID:30186109.
Klein P, Dingledine R, Aronica E, Bernard C, Blümcke I, Boison D, Brodie MJ, Brooks-Kayal AR, Engel J Jr, Forcelli PA, Hirsch LJ, Kaminski RM, Klitgaard H, Kobow K, Lowenstein DH, Pearl PL, Pitkänen A, Puhakka N, Rogawski MA, Schmidt D, Sillanpää M, Sloviter RS, Steinhäuser C, Vezzani A, Walker MC, Löscher W. Commonalities in epileptogenic processes from different acute brain insults: Do they translate? Epilepsia. 2018 Jan;59(1):37-66. doi:10.1111/epi.13965. Epub 2017 Dec 15. PMID:29247482.
Ravizza T, Onat FY, Brooks-Kayal AR, Depaulis A, Galanopoulou AS, Mazarati A, Numis AL, Sankar R, Friedman A. WONOEP appraisal: Biomarkers of epilepsy-associated comorbidities. Epilepsia. 2017 Mar;58(3):331-342. doi:10.1111/epi.13652. Epub 2016 Dec 30. PMID:28035782.
Thomas AX, Cruz Del Angel Y, Gonzalez MI, Carrel AJ, Carlsen J, Lam PM, Hempstead BL, Russek SJ, Brooks-Kayal AR. Rapid Increases in proBDNF after Pilocarpine-Induced Status Epilepticus in Mice Are Associated with Reduced proBDNF Cleavage Machinery. eNeuro. 2016 Mar 30;3(1):ENEURO.0020-15.2016. doi:10.1523/ENEURO.0020-15.2016. PMID:27057559.
Raible DJ, Frey LC, Del Angel YC, Carlsen J, Hund D, Russek SJ, Smith B, Brooks-Kayal AR. JAK/STAT pathway regulation of GABAA receptor expression after differing severities of experimental TBI. Exp Neurol. 2015 Sep;271:445-56. doi:10.1016/j.expneurol.2015.07.001. Epub 2015 Jul 11. PMID:26172316.
Grabenstatter HL, Cogswell M, Cruz Del Angel Y, Carlsen J, Gonzalez MI, Raol YH, Russek SJ, Brooks-Kayal AR. Effect of spontaneous seizures on GABAA receptor α4 subunit expression in an animal model of temporal lobe epilepsy. Epilepsia. 2014 Nov;55(11):1826-33. doi:10.1111/epi.12771. Epub 2014 Sep 15. PMID:25223733.
Simonato M, Brooks-Kayal AR, Engel J Jr, Galanopoulou AS, Jensen FE, Moshé SL, O'Brien TJ, Pitkanen A, Wilcox KS, French JA. The challenge and promise of anti-epileptic therapy development in animal models. Lancet Neurol. 2014 Sep;13(9):949-60. doi:10.1016/S1474-4422(14)70076-6. Epub 2014 Aug 10. Erratum in:Lancet Neurol. 2015 Jul;14(7):677. PMID:25127174.