Application (-)-α-Kainic Acid is a naturally occurring neuroexcitatory chemical that is an selective agonist for a subtype of ionotropic glutamate receptor. Administration of (-)-α-Kainic Acid has been shown to increase production of reactive oxygen species, mitochondrial dysfunction, and apoptosis in neurons in many regions of the brain, particularly in the hippocampal subregions and in the hilus of dentate gyrus.