Clinical studies have demonstrated that chronic alcohol abuse is an independent outcome variable in acute lung injury. The Emory Center for the Study of Acute Lung Injury is determining the mechanisms by which ethanol increases susceptibility to acute lung injury. We developed a rat model of chronic ethanol ingestion and demonstrated that ethanol predisposes rats to edematous lung injury elicit...

The present study was designed to investigate the influence of acute ethanol intake and its withdrawal on the anticonvulsant effect of alpha-tocopherol in penicillin-induced epileptiform activity. Ethanol-treated rats received a daily dose of 3 g/kg or 9.0 g/kg of 30% ethanol solution for 3 days. Thirty minutes after penicillin injection (500 units, i.c.) the most effective dose of alpha-tocoph...

Recently, the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster has been introduced as a model system to study the molecular bases of a variety of ethanol-induced behaviors. It became immediately apparent that the behavioral changes elicited by acute ethanol exposure are remarkably similar in flies and mammals. Flies show signs of acute intoxication, which range from locomotor stimulation at low doses to compl...

Behavioral studies show that the GABAergic system in the central amygdala (CeA) nucleus has a complex role in the reinforcing effects effects of ethanol and the anxiogenic response to ethanol withdrawal. Opioid peptides and nociceptin/orphanin FQ (nociceptin) within the CeA are implicated also in regulating voluntary ethanol consumption and ethanol relapse. Recently, we reported that basal GABA...

Melatonin has recently been suggested as an antioxidant that may protect neurons from oxidative stress. Acute ethanol administration produces both lipid peroxidation as an indicator of oxidative stress in the brain and impairs water-maze performance in spatial learning and memory tasks. The present study investigated the effect of melatonin against ethanol-induced oxidative stress and spatial m...

It is well known that the anxiolytic potential of ethanol is maintained during chronic exposure. We have confirmed this using a light–dark box paradigm following chronic ethanol ingestion via a liquid diet. However, cessation from chronic ethanol exposure is known to cause severe withdrawal anxiety. These opposing effects on anxiety likely result from neuro-adaptations of neurotransmitter syste...

The effect of fat rich (F), protein rich (P) and carbohydrate rich (C) diets and chronic ethanol consumption on experimental acute pancreatitis was studied in rats. One hundred and ninety two animals with induced acute pancreatitis were divided into eight groups fed either a mixture of water and 15% ethanol (v/v), or tap water combined with standard or special diets according to their group, fo...

Hippocampal network oscillations at gamma band frequency (γ, 30-80 Hz) are closely associated with higher brain functions such as learning and memory. Acute ethanol exposure at intoxicating concentrations (≥50 mM) impairs cognitive function. This study aimed to determine the effects and the mechanisms of acute ethanol exposure on γ oscillations in an in vitro model. Ethanol (25-100 mM) suppress...

It is well known that the anxiolytic potential of ethanol is maintained during chronic exposure. We have confirmed this using a light–dark box paradigm following chronic ethanol ingestion via a liquid diet. However, cessation from chronic ethanol exposure is known to cause severe withdrawal anxiety. These opposing effects on anxiety likely result from neuro-adaptations of neurotransmitter syste...

The suppressive effects on acute alcoholic liver injury of S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) and the sake yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae Kyokai No. 9, have been shown previously. To enhance the suppression of acute alcoholic liver injury by sake yeast, we prepared SAM-accumulating sake yeast (SAM yeast). Male C57BL/6 mice that had been fed on a diet containing 0.25% SAM yeast or sake yeast for two we...