AIMS Several lines of evidence support a critical role of TLR4 in the neuroimmune responses associated with alcohol disorders and propose inhibitors of TLR4 signaling as potential treatments for alcoholism. In this work, we investigated the effect of T5342126 compound, a selective TLR4 inhibitor, on excessive drinking and microglial activation associated with ethanol dependence. METHODS We us...

Orexins are hypothalamic neuropeptides which bind to two G-protein-coupled receptors, orexin-1 (OX(1)R) and orexin-2 (OX(2)R) receptor. While a role for OX(1)R has been established in both ethanol reinforcement and ethanol-seeking behaviour, the role of OX(2)R in these behaviours is relatively less-studied. The aim of this study was to determine the role of central OX(2)R in ethanol-taking and ...

chronic ethanol consumption leads to oxidative stress in the heart and erythrocytes of rats. as ziziphus jujuba fruit has been shown to have potent antioxidants, such as flavonoids, we conducted this study to evaluate the effects of aqueous fruit extracts from z. jujuba on rat hearts and erythrocytes following chronic ethanol consumption. twenty-eight male wistar rats were randomly divided into...

introduction: there is considerable evidence that glutamate-mediated excitatory neurotransmission plays an important role in mediating the behavioral actions of acutely administered ethanol. the aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of acute ethanol exposure on nr1 subunit of nmda (n-methyl-d-aspartate) receptor distribution in the cerebral cortex of chick embryo on the 10th an...

BACKGROUND Erroneous diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide (Dlco) values as measured by spectrophotometry were observed at our facility in ethanol-intoxicated subjects. An atypical methane curve tracing was noted in these subjects. STUDY OBJECTIVES We hypothesized that ethanol intoxication interferes with Dlco measurements obtained using methane and designed a study to assess the...

CYP2A5 metabolizes xenobiotics and activates hepatocarcinogens, and induction occurs in response to hepatic damage and cellular stress. We evaluated whether ethanol can elevate CYP2A5 and whether CYP2E1 plays a role in the ethanol induction of CYP2A5. Wild-type (WT), CYP2E1 knockout (KO), and CYP2E1 knockin (KI) mice were fed ethanol for 3 weeks. Ethanol increased CYP2E1 and CYP2A5 protein and ...

Individuals who carry the most active alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) isoforms are protected against alcoholism. This work addresses the mechanism by which a high ADH activity leads to low ethanol intake in animals. Male and female ethanol drinker rats (UChB) were allowed access to 10% ethanol for 1 h. Females showed 70% higher hepatic ADH activity and displayed 60% lower voluntary ethanol intake t...

Alcohol addiction is a common affliction with a strong genetic component [1]. Although mammalian studies have provided significant insight into the molecular mechanisms underlying ethanol consumption [2], other organisms such as Drosophila melanogaster are better suited for unbiased, forward genetic approaches to identify novel genes. Behavioral responses to ethanol, such as hyperactivity, seda...

Withania somnifera (WS) or its psychotropic preparation is known to play a critical role in morphine, alcohol and benzodiazepines addiction. This study investigates the role of WS in acute ethanol and withdrawal from chronic ethanol consumption using elevated plus maze paradigm in rats. Acute administration of ethanol (1.5-2 g/kg, ip) triggered anxiolytic effect and withdrawal from prolonged et...

Both clinical and laboratory reports indicate that ethanol addicts are prone to recurrent infections. We hypothesize that ethanol promotes macrophage apoptosis, thus compromising the efficiency of the mononuclear phagocyte system in dealing with infection. We studied the effect of ethanol on macrophage apoptosis. Human monocytes isolated from healthy subjects after an alcohol drinking binge sho...