The molecular mechanisms of ethanol toxicity and tolerance in bacteria, although important for biotechnology and bioenergy applications, remain incompletely understood. Genetic studies have identified potential cellular targets for ethanol and have revealed multiple mechanisms of tolerance, but it remains difficult to separate the direct and indirect effects of ethanol. We used adaptive evoluti...

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...

Physiological alcohol dependence is a key adaptation to chronic ethanol consumption that underlies withdrawal symptoms, is thought to directly contribute to alcohol addiction behaviors, and is associated with cognitive problems such as deficits in learning and memory. Based on the idea that an ethanol-adapted (dependent) animal will perform better in a learning assay than an animal experiencing...

BACKGROUND Previous research has revealed that orally administered ethanol serves as a reinforcer in nonhuman primates. The purposes of the present study were to examine the relationship between ethanol preferences and intakes in two distinct self-administration contexts and to reveal some of the behavioral and neurochemical correlates of oral ethanol self-administration in monkeys. METHODS T...

A number of studies currently focus on the renewable fuels to reduce the reliance on petroleum fuels. Biofuels such as biodiesel and bioethanol have been studied and tested in many countries including India. One of the methods to reduce the use of fossil fuel is blending ethanol with fossil diesel. However, an emulsifier or a co-solvent is needed to homogenize the diesel-ethanol blends. The ric...

The U.S. ethanol fuel industry has experienced preferential treatment from federal and state governments ever since the Energy Tax Act of 1978 exempted 10% ethanol/gasoline blend (gasohol) from the federal excise tax. Combined with a 54 ¢/gal ethanol import tariff, this exemption was designed to provide incentives for the establishment and development of a U.S. ethanol industry. Despite these t...

Recombinant alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionic acid (AMPA)/kainate receptors expressed in oocytes are inhibited by ethanol and the sensitivity to ethanol depends on the kainate concentration and the subunit(s) expressed. For example, GluR3 kainate channels are more sensitive to inhibition by ethanol than GluR6 channels in the presence of maximally effective kainate concentrati...

In oxygen-aerated non-growing cells a subinhibitory ethanol concentration (1 G/L) causes an H /K exchange. An inhibitory ethanol concentration (30 G/L) slows down acidification but + + has no effect on its extent. The transmembrane pH depends directly on the ethanol level in the medium and is not lowered at high ethanol concentrations. Changes in membrane potential induced by ethanol are also c...

Isozyme 3a of rabbit hepatic cytochrome P-450, also termed P-450ALC, was previously isolated and characterized and was shown to be induced 3- to 5-fold by exposure to ethanol. In the present study, antibody against rabbit P-450ALC was used to identify a homologous protein in alcohol dehydrogenase-negative (ADH-) and -positive (ADH+) deermice, Peromyscus maniculatus. The antibody reacts with a s...

Chronic ethanol consumption causes structural and functional reorganization in the hippocampus and induces alterations in the gene expression of gamma-aminobutyric acid type A receptors (GABAARs). Distinct forced intermittent exposure models have been used previously to investigate changes in GABAAR expression, with contrasting results. Here, we used repeated cycles of a Chronic Intermittent Et...