The swift increase in alcohol metabolism: Inhibition by propylthiouracil

Administration of a single large dose of ethanol (5 g/kg) to rats elevates the rates of ethanol metabolism and of oxygen consumption in perfused livers in 2–3 hr. Pretreatment with the antithyroid drug propylthiouracil (PTU) for 10 days abolished both of these effects. Under all treatment conditions studied (controls; PTU-pretreatment; acute ethanol treatment; PTU-pretreated + acute ethanol treatment), a significant correlation between ethanol metabolism and oxygen consumption was observed (r = 0.86). It is concluded that a normal thyroidal state is required to evoke the swift increase in alcohol metabolism (SIAM) and an elevation of oxygen consumption.     

Ethanol metabolism,oxidative stress,and endoplasmic reticulum stress responses in the lungs of hepatic alcohol dehydrogenase deficient deer mice after chronic ethanol feeding

Consumption and over-consumption of alcoholic beverages are well-recognized contributors to a variety of pulmonary disorders, even in the absence of intoxication. The mechanisms by which alcohol (ethanol) may produce disease include oxidative stress and prolonged endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. Many aspects of these processes remain incompletely understood due to a lack of a suitable animal model. Chronic alcohol over-consumption reduces hepatic alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), the principal canonical metabolic pathway of ethanol oxidation. We therefore modeled this situation using hepatic ADH-deficient deer mice fed 3.5% ethanol daily for 3 months. Blood ethanol concentration was 180 mg% in ethanol fed mice, compared to < 1.0% in the controls. Acetaldehyde (oxidative metabolite of ethanol) was minimally, but significantly increased in ethanol-fed vs. pair-fed control mice. Total fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEEs, nonoxidative metabolites of ethanol) were 47.6 μg/g in the lungs of ethanol-fed mice as compared to 1.5 μg/g in pair-fed controls. Histological and immunohistological evaluation showed perivascular and peribronchiolar lymphocytic infiltration, and significant oxidative injury, in the lungs of ethanol-fed mice compared to pair-fed controls. Several fold increases for cytochrome P450 2E1, caspase 8 and caspase 3 found in the lungs of ethanol-fed mice as compared to pair-fed controls suggest role of oxidative stress in ethanol-induced lung injury. ER stress and unfolded protein response signaling were also significantly increased in the lungs of ethanol-fed mice. Surprisingly, no significant activation of inositol-requiring enzyme-1α and spliced XBP1 was observed indicating a lack of activation of corrective mechanisms to reinstate ER homeostasis. The data suggest that oxidative stress and prolonged ER stress, coupled with formation and accumulation of cytotoxic FAEEs may contribute to the pathogenesis of alcoholic lung disease.     

Ethanol metabolism in Peromyscus genetically deficient in alcohol dehydrogenase

Ethanol metabolism was compared in two strains of the deermouse, Peromyscus maniculatus. Animals of theAdh^N/Adh^N strain, which lack liver alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) activity, eliminated ethanol at a signficantly slower rate (P < 0.0005) than those of the Adh^F/Adh^Fstrain, which have normal liver ADH activity. However, a comparison of the blood ethanol elimination rate (BEER) in the two strains indicated that, at high blood ethanol concentrations, non-ADH mediated pathways may account for as much as two-thirds of normal ethanol elimination in this species. Chronic ethanol consumption induced an elevated BEER in Adh^F/Adh^F mice but not in AdhN/Adh^N mice. This strain difference in response to ethanol feeding suggests that increases in BEER are mediated primarily via the ADH pathway. A microsomal ethanol-oxidizing system (MEOS), independent of ADH and catalase, was shown to exist in microsomal preparations from both strains of P. maniculatus. MEOS activity of naive Adh^N/Adh^N mice was 2.3-fold higher than that of naive Adh^F/Adh^H animals. Both strains had a 3-fold greater MEOS activity following chronic ethanol consumption. Contrary to similar investigations in ethanol-fed rats, the alteration in MEOS activity was not accompanied by significant changes in cytochrome P-450, NADPH-cytochrome c reductase or phospholipid. Most importantly, the elevated in vitro MEOS activity of ethanol-fed Adh^N/Adh^N mice had no significant effect upon BEER. These results suggest caution in attaching physiological significance to the simultaneous, ethanol-induced increase of the in vitro MEOS and of BEER in experimental animals with normal liver ADH activities.     

Neurobehavioral effects of alcohol in AMPA receptor subunit (GluR1) deficient mice

Of the ionotropic glutamatergic receptors, the NMDA receptor is clearly implicated in the acute and chronic effects of ethanol; however, the role of the AMPA receptor in mediating the effects of ethanol in vivo is as yet unclear. Using mice deficient in the AMPA receptor subunit GluR1 (GluR1-/- mice), we investigated whether the AMPA receptor had a significant role in mediating the effects of ethanol. GluR1-/- mice showed greater locomotor activity in a novel environment, but by the fifth day of repeated testing their activity was the same as that of wild-type mice. In contrast to their enhanced locomotor activity, on an accelerating rotarod GluR1-/- mice performed consistently worse than wild-types. With regard to the effects of ethanol on motor responses, GluR1-/- mice did not differ significantly from wild-type mice in ethanol's sedative or incoordinating effects. However, the GluR1-/- mice were insensitive to the hypothermic effects of a hypnotic dose of ethanol in contrast to wild-types; this effect was dissociable from the hypnotic effects of ethanol. Further, tolerance to ethanol developed equally for GluR1-/- mice versus wild-type mice. In terms of alcohol drinking behavior, compared to wild-types, GluR1-/- mice differed neither in the acquisition of voluntary ethanol consumption nor in stress-induced ethanol drinking, nor in the expression of an alcohol deprivation effect (ADE) which is used as a model of relapse-like drinking behavior. In summary, although the loss of a hypothermic effect of ethanol in GluR1-/- mice indicates a critical role for the AMPA receptors in this effect, the GluR1 subunit of the AMPA receptor does not seem to play a critical role in the etiology of alcohol dependence. However, changes observed in activity patterns may be related to the putative role of AMPA receptors in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.     

Anxiogenic-like behavioral phenotype of mice deficient in phosphodiesterase 4B (PDE4B).

Phosphodiesterase-4 (PDE4), an enzyme that catalyzes the hydrolysis of cyclic AMP and plays a critical role in controlling its intracellular concentration, has been implicated in depression- and anxiety-like behaviors. However, the functions of the four PDE4 subfamilies (PDE4A, PDE4B, PDE4C, and PDE4D) remain largely unknown. In animal tests sensitive to anxiolytics, antidepressants, memory enhancers, or analgesics, we examined the behavioral phenotype of mice deficient in PDE4B (PDE4B-/-). Immunoblot analysis revealed loss of PDE4B expression in the cerebral cortex and amygdala of PDE4B-/- mice. The reduction of PDE4B expression was accompanied by decreases in PDE4 activity in the brain regions of PDE4B-/- mice. Compared to PDE4B+/+ littermates, PDE4B-/- mice displayed anxiogenic-like behavior, as evidenced by decreased head-dips and time spent in head-dipping in the holeboard test, reduced transitions and time on the light side in the light-dark transition test, and decreased initial exploration and rears in the open-field test. Consistent with anxiogenic-like behavior, PDE4B-/- mice displayed increased levels of plasma corticosterone. In addition, these mice also showed a modest increase in the proliferation of neuronal cells in the hippocampal dentate gyrus. In the forced-swim test, PDE4B-/- mice exhibited decreased immobility; however, this was not supported by the results from the tail-suspension test. PDE4B-/- mice did not display changes in memory, locomotor activity, or nociceptive responses. Taken together, these results suggest that the PDE4B subfamily is involved in signaling pathways that contribute to anxiogenic-like effects on behavior.     

Ethanol metabolism in vivo by the microsomal ethanol-oxidizing system in deermice lacking alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH)

To assess the importance of non-ADH ethanol metabolism, ADH-negative and ADH-positive deermice were fed liquid diets containing ethanol or isocaloric carbohydrate for 2-4 weeks. Blood ethanol disappearance rate increased significantly after chronic ethanol feeding in both strains. Although at low ethanol concentrations (between 5 and 10 mM) there was no significant difference between ethanol-fed and pair-fed control animals, at high ethanol concentrations (between 40 and 70 mM) blood ethanol elimination rates were increased significantly after chronic ethanol feeding in both ADH-positive and ADH-negative animals. There was no significant effect of the catalase inhibitor 3-amino-1,2,4-triazole on the ethanol elimination/rates in both strains. Whereas catalase and ADH activities were not altered after chronic ethanol treatment, the activity of the microsomal ethanol-oxidizing system (MEOS) was enhanced three to four times in both strains, and microsomal cytochrome P-450 content was also increased significantly. When MEOS activity was expressed per cytochrome P-450 content, it was higher in ADH-negative than in ADH-positive animals, and it increased after ethanol administration. When microsomal proteins were separated by sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, ethanol-fed animals had a distinct band which reflected the increase in microsomal cytochrome P-450 content and seemed to reflect a unique form of cytochrome P-450 induced by ethanol. Thus, despite the absence of the ADH pathway, a large amount of ethanol was metabolized by MEOS in ADH-negative deermice; this was associated with increased blood ethanol elimination rates, enhanced MEOS activity, and quantitative and qualitative changes of cytochrome P-450.     

Viability of cells in ethanol. Role of alcohol dehydrogenase.

Rodent cells were found to contain a high level of alcohol dehydrogenase activity which was not inducible. Other hepatoma and nonhepatoma cell lines were tested and found to contain lower but measurable levels of alcohol dehydrogenase.     

Role of ethanol metabolism in the alcohol-induced increase in urinary folate excretion in rats

Chronic ethanol use can lead to folic acid deficiency in humans. In rats, acute doses of ethanol produce a marked increase in the urinary excretion of folate which is followed by a decrease in plasma folate levels. To assess the respective roles of ethanol and its metabolism in these effects, five groups of male Sprague-Dawley rats were treated orally as follows: (1) ethanol in four doses of 1 g/kg each at 0, 1, 2 and 3 hr; (2) ethanol as above plus the alcohol dehydrogenase inhibitor 4-methylpyrazole (4-MP) at 50 mg/kg, i.p., 15 min prior to 0 hr; (3) glucose in four isocaloric doses; (4) glucose plus 4-MP as above; and (5) methanol in four doses of 1 g/kg. Total folate levels in the urine peaked in both ethanol- and methanol-treated rats at the same time as the urine alcohol levels (after 6-8 hr) and then declined over the same time course as the alcohol levels. Concurrent administration of 4-MP inhibited the metabolism of ethanol and maintained the increase in urinary folate excretion throughout 24 hr. Ethanol administration produced minor changes in the relative distribution of folate derivatives in the urine, and these changes were not prevented by 4-MP treatment. The urinary levels of formic acid, which is metabolized by folate-dependent processes, were increased by ethanol administration; this increase was prevented by 4-MP. These results suggest that ethanol is not unique among alcohols in increasing urinary folate excretion and that ethanol metabolism plays no role in the increased urinary folate excretion. However, ethanol metabolism contributes to a second effect of ethanol on the folate system, which leads to increased urinary levels of formic acid.     

The effects of inhibiting choline dehydrogenase on choline metabolism in mice

3,3-Dimethylbutanol (Dimbunol), a competitive inhibitor of choline dehydrogenase (CDH), and ethylcholine mustard aziridinium (ECMA), an effective irreversible inhibitor of both CDH and choline transport, were investigated for their effects upon the uptake and metabolism of [3H]choline in mice. Thirty minutes after Dimbunol administration (i.p. 0.5 mmoles/kg) a reduction in the rate of choline oxidation was accompanied by an inhibition of choline phosphorylation in the kidney. Choline had accumulated to 5-fold the control level. After ECMA (i.v. 4 mumoles/kg), kidney choline was elevated 18-fold and both oxidation and phosphorylation rates were severely inhibited. In the liver Dimbunol inhibited oxidation and phosphorylation of choline and generated a 2-fold rise in tissue choline. Ethylcholine mustard aziridinium inhibited both oxidation and phosphorylation in the liver to the same extent as in the kidney but produced only a 3-fold elevation of choline. Dimbunol failed to elevate serum choline 30 min after administration and brain choline and acetylcholine levels were also unchanged. Serum choline was doubled by ECMA. These studies suggest that both transport across the renal tubules and oxidation may be important in choline regulation, that high levels of choline may accumulate in the liver and kidney which are not available for acetylcholine synthesis but that longer term studies on the effects of Dimbunol might reveal useful ways of facilitating sustained elevation of serum choline in precursor therapy.     

Absence seizures in succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase deficient mice: a model of juvenile absence epilepsy

The succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase (SSADH) null mouse represents a viable animal model for human SSADH deficiency and is characterized by markedly elevated levels of both gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB) and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in brain, blood, and urine. GHB is known to induce absence-like seizures and absence seizures have been reported to occur in children with SSADH deficiency. We tested the hypothesis that the phenotype of the SSADH(-/-) mouse shows absence-like seizures because of the inordinately high levels of GHB in the brain of this mutant animal. Sequential electrocorticographic (ECoG) and prolonged video ECoG recordings from chronically implanted electrodes were done on SSADH(-/-), SSADH(+/-), and SSADH(+/+) mice from postnatal day (P) 10 to (P) 21. Spontaneous, recurrent absence-like seizures appeared in the SSADH(-/-) during the second week of life and evolved into generalized convulsive seizures late in the third week of life that were associated with an explosive onset of status epilepticus which was lethal. The seizures in SSADH null mice were consistent with typical absence seizures in rodent with 7 Hz spike-and-wave discharge (SWD) recorded from thalamocortical circuitry, the onset/offset of which was time-locked with ictal behavior characterized by facial myoclonus, vibrissal twitching and frozen immobility. The absence seizures became progressively more severe from P14 to 18 at which time they evolved into myoclonic and generalized convulsive seizures that progressed into a lethal status epilepticus. The absence seizures in SSADH(-/-) were abolished by ethosuximide (ETX) and the GABA(B)R antagonist CGP 35348. The seizure phenotype in the SSADH(-/-) recapitulates that observed in human SSADH deficiency. Hence, SSADH(-/-) may be used to investigate the molecular mechanisms that underpin the pathogenesis of absence and generalized tonic-clonic seizures associated with SSADH deficiency. As well, the SSADH(-/-) may represent a unique animal model of the transition from absence to myoclonic and generalized convulsive seizures that is observed in up to 80% of patients with juvenile absence epilepsy.     

Modification of the metabolism and toxicity of styrene and styrene oxide in hepatic cytochrome P450 reductase deficient mice and CYP2F2 deficient mice

Styrene causes toxicity in both the lung and the liver. The study of the relationship of this toxicity to the metabolism of styrene has been aided by the use of knockout mice for both bioactivation and detoxification pathways. It has been hypothesized that CYP2E1 is primarily responsible for styrene bioactivation in mouse liver and CYP2F2 in mouse lung. Two knockout strains were used in the current studies. Mice deficient in hepatic cytochrome P450 reductase had much less hepatic metabolism of styrene to styrene oxide. Styrene (600 mg/kg, i.p.) caused significant hepatotoxicity, as determined by serum sorbitol dehydrogenase and glutathione levels, in the wild-type but not in the knockout mice. It caused lung toxicity, as determined by protein levels, cell number, and lactate dehydrogenase activity in the bronchioalveolar lavage fluid of wild-type mice, but this effect was less in the knockout mice. In CYP2F2 knockout mice there was only a small decrease in the hepatic metabolism of styrene but a very large decrease in pulmonary metabolism. As expected the CYP2F2 knockout and wild-type mice were equally susceptible to styrene-induced hepatotoxicity, but the knockout mice were less susceptible to styrene-induced pneumotoxicity. Although the results are inconsistent with the simple hypothesis that styrene pneumotoxicity is due to the bioactivation of styrene to styrene oxide by CYYP2F2, they demonstrate the importance of both liver and lung in the metabolism of styrene, but additional pharmacokinetic studies are needed to help clarify the relationship between target organ metabolism and susceptibility.     

Effect of triiodothyronine on alcohol dehydrogenase and aldehyde dehydrogenase activities in rat liver. Implications for the control of ethanol metabolism

Treatment of rats with 20 micrograms of 3,3',5-triiodo-L-thyronine (T3) per 100 g body wt for a period of 6 days led to a 45% decrease in total liver alcohol dehydrogenase and a 36% decrease in total liver aldehyde dehydrogenase. Most of the latter decrease was directly attributable to a 57% fall in the level of the physiologically-important low Km mitochondrial isoenzyme. The high Km isoenzyme of the postmitochondrial and soluble fractions was much less affected by T3-treatment. T3, at concentrations up to 0.1 mM, did not inhibit the activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase in vitro. Despite these large losses of the two enzymes most intimately involved in ethanol metabolism, the rate of ethanol elimination in vivo was the same in T3-treated and control animals. Moreover, there was no difference between the two groups in the susceptibility of ethanol elimination to inhibition by 4-methylpyrazole, making it unlikely that an alternative route of ethanol metabolism had been significantly induced by treatment with T3. As it had been suggested that T3 might create a "hypermetabolic state" in which constraints normally imposed on alcohol dehydrogenase and aldehyde dehydrogenase are removed thereby compensating for any loss in total enzymic activity, 2,4-dinitrophenol (0.1 mmoles/kg body wt) was administered to rats in order to raise the general metabolic rate. However, the uncoupler proved to be lethal to T3-treated animals and did not stimulate ethanol elimination in controls. The results do not support the notion that ethanol elimination in vivo is normally governed either by the level of alcohol dehydrogenase or by that of hepatic aldehyde dehydrogenase. However, the mode of control remains unclear.     

Methanol metabolism and embryotoxicity in rat and mouse conceptuses: comparisons of alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH1), formaldehyde dehydrogenase (ADH3), and catalase

Mouse embryos are more sensitive than rat embryos in response to methanol (CH(3)OH) and its ability to elicit developmental abnormalities. Intrinsic differences in the metabolism of CH(3)OH to formaldehyde (HCHO) and formic acid (HCOOH) by the enzymes alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH1), formaldehyde dehydrogenase (ADH3), and catalase may contribute to the observed species sensitivity. Specific activities for enzymes involved in CH(3)OH metabolism were determined in rat and mouse conceptuses during the organogenesis period of 8-25 somites. Spatial activity relationships were also compared separately in heads, hearts, trunks, and the visceral yolk sac (VYS) from early (7-12 somites) and late (20-22 somites) organogenesis-stage rat and mouse embryos. Catalase activities were similar between rat and mouse conceptuses. In the mouse heart, catalase activities were consistently lower when compared to other tissues. Specific activities for catalase were consistently highest in the VYS of both species when compared to other tissues of the embryo. These activities were highly significant in the 6-12 somite VYS. ADH1 activities were significantly higher in embryos when compared to VYS in both species, except for a 27% lower activity in the early 8-10 somite mouse embryo. Mouse ADH1 activities in the VYS were significantly lower throughout the organogenesis period when compared to the rat VYS or embryos of either species. Mouse activities were lower overall in specific tissues of the embryo but maintained the same relative proportions as in the rat. ADH3 activities in the rat VYS were significantly higher by 20% than those in the mouse. Mouse embryo ADH3 activities were slow to mature, starting at a level 42% below rat, and failed to reach optimal levels until the 14-16-somite stage. Heart ADH3 activities were also significantly lower in the mouse embryo at the 7-12-somite stage. Both species have lower ADH3 activities in the early heart, relative to other embryonic tissues. These results show a more slowly maturing capacity of the mouse embryo to remove HCHO, which provides a rationale for increased sensitivity of this species to CH(3)OH-induced embryotoxicity and teratogenicity.     

Studies on the disposition and metabolism of pentachloroanisole in female mice

Pentachlorophenol (PCP) has been shown to be methylated to O-methyl-PCP, pentachloroanisole (PCA), in various biological systems. The disposition and metabolism of PCA were studied in female mice to which the compound was administered at a dose of 20 mg [¹⁴C]PCA/kg. Elimination of [¹⁴C]PCA equivalents from mouse tissues was rapid, with half-lives ranging from 5 to 10 hr in all tissues examined except liver. Excretion of ¹⁴C was primarily via the urine, in which a PCP conjugate, free PCP, and an oxidation product, tetrachlorohydroquinone, were demonstrated. Free PCP and its conjugate were also present in feces. There was no evidence for the presence of parent PCA in either urine or feces. Thus the half-lives of elimination and metabolite patterns resulting from treatment of mice with PCA approximated those seen following PCP administration to rodents. These data suggest that PCA must be demethylated prior to excretion.