BOSTON, Massachusetts : US Senator Edward Kennedy, a Democratic Party icon and scion of a storied political dynasty, was rushed to a hospital in Massachusetts Saturday after an apparent seizure, his office said.

"Senator Kennedy went to Cape Cod Hospital this morning after feeling ill at his home. After discussion with his doctors in Boston, Senator Kennedy was sent to Massachusetts General Hospital for further examination," a statement said.

A later statement from his office said: "It appears that Senator Kennedy experienced a seizure this morning. He is undergoing a battery of tests at Massachusetts General Hospital to determine the cause of the seizure.

"Senator Kennedy is resting comfortably, and it is unlikely we will know anything more for the next 48 hours," it added.

The Democratic senator had been at the Kennedy family compound in the town of Hyannis when he fell ill. Family members including niece Caroline Kennedy were arriving at the hospital in Boston.

The Boston Globe newspaper reported that Kennedy had suffered a seizure at home, and then another as he was being transported by helicopter.

Kennedy, 76, is the last surviving brother of president John F. Kennedy, who was assassinated on November 22, 1963. His brother Robert Kennedy was assassinated on June 5, 1968 as he was campaigning for president.

Kennedy, who exerts heavy influence within his party and in Congress, is a fierce critic of President George W. Bush and a supporter of Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama.

"I have been in contact with the family. Obviously they are in our thoughts and prayers," Obama said on the campaign trail.

"Ted Kennedy is a giant in American political history," Obama said. "He has done more for the health care of others than just about anybody in history and so we are going to be rooting for him and I insist on being optimistic about how it's going to turn out."

First elected to the senate in 1962, he is the second longest-serving senator after Robert Byrd of West Virginia.

Senator John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, said he "was very sorry to hear that Senator Kennedy has taken ill, and like millions of Americans, Cindy and I anxiously await word of his condition.

"Senator Kennedy's role in the US Senate cannot be overstated. He is a legendary lawmaker, and I have the highest respect for him," McCain said.

Senator Hillary Clinton, competing against Obama for the Democratic nomination, said in a statement: "My thoughts and prayers are with Senator Ted Kennedy and his family today. We all wish him well and a quick recovery."

- AFP /ls