This work, which results from the Marburg colloquium, chose to focus on one of the more common forms of partial epilepsies and for which surgery is often the treatment of choice, namely the mesial temporal lobe epilepsies. Significant progress has been made over the last few years, particularly in understanding the borderline forms of this type of epilepsy. The first part of this work concentrates on the concept of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy and its pathophysiology. The second part addresses the clinical characteristics, in particular the natural evolution of the illness, the different aetiologies and the diagnostic relevance of the ictal semiology. The third part concentrates on the clinical and experimental neurophysiology, while the fourth part addresses imaging techniques. Finally, the last part outlines the current situation of the different therapeutic strategies. It is targeted at neurologists, neuropaediatricians, epileptologists, neurosurgeons and all doctors involved in the treatment of focal epilepsies. Every year, a Bethel-Cleveland Symposia type colloquium takes place in alternation in Marburg, Cleveland or Lyon.