The anticonvulsant effects of felbamate (10-300 mg/kg, intraperitoneally, IP), and those of two representative antagonists of the excitatory amino acid receptors, 5-7 dichlorokynurenic acid (5-7DCKA; 0.6-30 nmol/mouse, intracerebroventricularly, ICV), and 2, 3-dihydroxy-6 nitro-7-sulfamoylbenzo (F) quinoxoline (NBQX; 1.1-33.6 mg/kg, IP) were studied in the DBA/2 mice. All drugs protected the animals from sound-induced seizures. The drugs were also effective against seizures induced by stimulation of the excitatory amino acid receptor complex using the agonists N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) or alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5 methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA). In separate studies, felbamate protected mice from seizures induced by ICV administration of the activator of dihydropyridine-sensitive calcium channels, methyl-1, 4-dihydro-2, 6-dimethyl-3-nitro-4-(2-trifluoromethylphenyl) pyridine-5-carboxylate (Bay k 8644), with ED50 values of 26 and 46.9 mg/kg for tonus and clonus, respectively. Using Bay k 8644, NBQX (1-40 mg/kg IP) was uneffective, while 5,7DCKA (5-90 nmol/mouse, ICV) protected mice against tonus. Moreover, felbamate prevented seizures induced by blocking voltage-dependent K+ channels using alpha-dendrotoxin, with ED50 values of 22.6 mg/kg for tonus and of 34.8 mg/kg for clonus. Conversely, 5,7DCKA or NBQX did not significantly antagonize seizures induced by alpha-dendrotoxin. The present data indicate that felbamate is an effective anticonvulsant drug in DBA/2 mice with a broader anticonvulsant spectrum than 5,7DCKA and NBQX.