Compendium of the most significant studies with reference to properties, intake, effects.

White AM, Matthews DB, Best PJ. Ethanol, memory, and hippocampal function: a review of recent findings. Hippocampus. 2000;10(1):88-93. doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1098-1063(2000)10:1<88::AID-HIPO10>3.0.CO;2-L.

Abstract. For well over a century, ethanol was believed to exert its effects on cognition and behavior by producing a ubiquitous depression of central nervous system activity. A general disruption in brain function was consistent with the belief that ethanol's effects on cognition and behavior were also quite general. Substantial evidence now indicates that ethanol produces a host of selective effects on neural activity, resulting in regional differences in ethanol's effects in the brain. Consistent with such evidence, recent research suggests that ethanol's effects on cognition and behavior are not as global as previously assumed. The present paper discusses evidence that many of ethanol's effects on learning and memory stem from altered cellular activity in the hippocampus and related structures. Potential mechanisms for ethanol's disruption of hippocampal function are reviewed. Evidence suggests that ethanol disrupts activity in the hippocampus by interacting directly with hippocampal neurons and by interacting with critical hippocampal afferents.

Kramer A, Arvand M, Christiansen B, Dancer S, Eggers M, Exner M, Müller D, Mutters NT, Schwebke I, Pittet D. Ethanol is indispensable for virucidal hand antisepsis: memorandum from the alcohol-based hand rub (ABHR) Task Force, WHO Collaborating Centre on Patient Safety, and the Commission for Hospital Hygiene and Infection Prevention (KRINKO), Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany. Antimicrob Resist Infect Control. 2022 Jul 6;11(1):93. doi: 10.1186/s13756-022-01134-7.

Abstract. The approval of ethanol by the Biocidal Products Regulation has been under evaluation since 2007. This follows concern over alcohol uptake from ethanol-based hand rubs (EBHR). If ethanol is classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic, or reprotoxic by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), then this would affect infection prevention and control practices.

Huovinen M, Ietta F, Repo JK, Paulesu L, Vähäkangas KH. The effect of ethanol and nicotine on ER stress in human placental villous explants. Curr Res Toxicol. 2022 Jun 28;3:100081. doi: 10.1016/j.crtox.2022.100081.

Abstract. Pregnant mothers continue smoking and drinking during pregnancy. To clarify the mechanisms of nicotine and ethanol toxicity during development, we have examined their effects on endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in human first trimester and term placental explants. 

Le Daré B, Lagente V, Gicquel T. Ethanol and its metabolites: update on toxicity, benefits, and focus on immunomodulatory effects. Drug Metab Rev. 2019 Nov;51(4):545-561. doi: 10.1080/03602532.2019.1679169. 

Abstract. This article summarizes recent experimental and epidemiological data on the toxic and beneficial effects of ethanol and its metabolites (acetaldehyde), and focuses on their immunomodulatory effects. The section dealing with the toxic effects of alcohol focuses on its chronic toxicity (liver disorders, carcinogenic effects, cardiovascular disorders, neuropsychic disorders, addiction and withdrawal syndrome, hematologic disorders, reprotoxicity, osteoporosis) although acute toxicity is considered. The role of oxidative metabolism of ethanol by alcohol dehydrogenase, cytochrome P450 2E1, and aldehyde dehydrogenase, as well as the impact of genetic polymorphism in its physiopathology are also highlighted. The section dealing with the beneficial effects of low to moderate alcohol consumption (on cardiovascular system, diabetes, the nervous system and sensory organs, autoimmune diseases, and rheumatology) highlights the importance of anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects in these observations. This knowledge, enriched by a focus on the immunomodulatory effects of ethanol and its metabolites, in particular on the NLRP3 inflammasome pathway, might facilitate the development of treatments that can reduce ethanol's harmful effects or accentuate its beneficial effects.

Miranda RC, Pietrzykowski AZ, Tang Y, Sathyan P, Mayfield D, Keshavarzian A, Sampson W, Hereld D. MicroRNAs: master regulators of ethanol abuse and toxicity? Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2010 Apr;34(4):575-87. doi: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2009.01126.x. Epub 2010 Jan 26.

Abstract. This critical review discusses new evidence showing that ethanol-sensitive miRNAs are indeed regulatory master-switches. More specifically, miRNAs control the development of tolerance, a crucial component of ethanol addiction. Other drugs of abuse also target some ethanol-sensitive miRNAs suggesting that common biochemical mechanisms underlie addiction. This review also discusses evidence that miRNAs mediate several ethanol pathologies, including disruption of neural stem cell proliferation and differentiation in the exposed fetus, gut leakiness that contributes to endotoxemia and alcoholic liver disease, and possibly also hepatocellular carcinomas and other gastrointestinal cancers. Finally, this review provides a perspective on emerging investigations into potential roles of miRNAs as mediators of ethanol's effects on inflammation and fracture healing, as well as the potential for miRNAs as diagnostic biomarkers and as targets for therapeutic interventions for alcohol-related disorders.

Gálvez G, González-Gutiérrez JP, Hödar-Salazar M, Sotomayor-Zárate R, Quintanilla ME, Quilaqueo ME, Rivera-Meza M, Iturriaga-Vásquez P. UFR2709, an Antagonist of Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors, Delays the Acquisition and Reduces Long-Term Ethanol Intake in Alcohol-Preferring UChB Bibulous Rats. Biomedicines. 2022 Jun 22;10(7):1482. doi: 10.3390/biomedicines10071482. 

Abstract. Alcoholism is a worldwide public health problem with high economic cost and which affects health and social behavior. It is estimated that alcoholism kills 3 million people globally, while in Chile it is responsible for around 9 thousand deaths per year. Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) are ligand-gated ion channels expressed in the central nervous system, and they were suggested to modulate the ethanol mechanism involved in abuse and dependence. Previous work demonstrated a short-term treatment with UFR2709, a nAChRs antagonist, which reduced ethanol intake using a two-bottle free-choice paradigm in University of Chile bibulous (UChB) rats. Here, we present evidence of the UFR2709 efficacy in reducing the acquisition and long-term ethanol consumption. Our results show that UFR2709 (2.5 mg/kg i.p.) reduces the seek behavior and ethanol intake, even when the drug administration was stopped, and induced a reduction in the overall ethanol intake by around 55%. Using naïve UChB bibulous rats, we demonstrate that UFR2709 could delay and reduce the genetically adaptive impulse to seek and drink ethanol and prevent its excessive intake.

Chin VS, Van Skike CE, Matthews DB. Effects of ethanol on hippocampal function during adolescence: a look at the past and thoughts on the future. Alcohol. 2010 Feb;44(1):3-14. doi: 10.1016/j.alcohol.2009.10.015.

Abstract. The current review explores the present state of the field as it relates to ethanol's effects in the hippocampus, particularly as it relates to spatial memory. In addition, we review potential neurobiological mechanisms that might underlie the age-dependent effects of ethanol in the hippocampus.

Vena AA, Zandy SL, Cofresí RU, Gonzales RA. Behavioral, neurobiological, and neurochemical mechanisms of ethanol self-administration: A translational review. Pharmacol Ther. 2020 Aug;212:107573. doi: 10.1016/j.pharmthera.2020.107573. 

Abstract.  In the present review, we discuss ethanol's interactions with a variety of neurotransmitter systems, summarizing findings from preclinical and translational studies to highlight recent progress in the field. We then describe animal models of ethanol self-administration, emphasizing the value, limitations, and validity of commonly used models. Lastly, we summarize the behavioral changes induced by chronic ethanol self-administration, with an emphasis on cue-elicited behavior, the role of ethanol-related memories, and the emergence of habitual ethanol seeking behavior.

Joseph JA, Akkermans S, Van Impe JFM. Processing Method for the Quantification of Methanol and Ethanol from Bioreactor Samples Using Gas Chromatography-Flame Ionization Detection. ACS Omega. 2022 Jul 8;7(28):24121-24133. doi: 10.1021/acsomega.2c00055.

Abstract.  In this study, a fast, simple, and sensitive method is developed to process biological samples by using the salting-out-assisted liquid-liquid extraction technique to quantify the concentration of methanol and ethanol using gas chromatography. 

Santhakumar C, Ormiston W, McCall JL, Bartlett A, Duncan D, Holden A. Portal vein embolization with absolute ethanol to induce hypertrophy of the future liver remnant. CVIR Endovasc. 2022 Jul 23;5(1):36. doi: 10.1186/s42155-022-00312-3. 

Abstract. Preoperative portal vein embolization (PVE) is widely used prior to major liver resection to reduce the risk of post-hepatectomy liver failure (PHLF). We evaluated the efficacy and safety of PVE using absolute ethanol.

Oyeyinka A, Kansal M, O'Sullivan SM, Gualtieri C, Smith ZM, Vonhoff FJ. Corazonin Neurons Contribute to Dimorphic Ethanol Sedation Sensitivity in Drosophila melanogaster. Front Neural Circuits. 2022 Jun 22;16:702901. doi: 10.3389/fncir.2022.702901.

Abstract. Exposure to alcohol has multiple effects on nervous system function, and organisms have evolved mechanisms to optimally respond to the presence of ethanol. Sex differences in ethanol-induced behaviors have been observed in several organisms, ranging from humans to invertebrates. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the dimorphic regulation of ethanol-induced behaviors remain incompletely understood.

Yan SL, Mong MC, Liu WH, Yin MC. Anti-apoptotic and Anti-oxidative Effects of Aqueous Extract prepared from Steamed Daylily Flower in Normal Cardiac and Hepatic Cells against Ethanol. Curr Top Med Chem. 2022 Jul 4. doi: 10.2174/1568026622666220704093652. 

Abstract. Alcohol abuse resulted in high prevalence of alcoholic cardiac and hepatic disorders. Any agent(s) with the bio-activities to suppress mitochondrial apoptotic pathway, and attenuate apoptotic and oxidative stresses might be able to protect cardiac and hepatic cells against ethanol.

Munier JJ, Marty VN, Spigelman I. Sex differences in α-adrenergic receptor function contribute to impaired hypothalamic metaplasticity following chronic intermittent ethanol exposure. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2022 Jul 5. doi: 10.1111/acer.14900.

Abstract. Individuals with alcohol use disorder (AUD) exhibit maladaptive responses of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis to stress, which has been linked to high rates of relapse to drinking among abstinent individuals. Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) parvocellular neuroendocrine cells (PNCs) within the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN) are critical to stress-induced HPA axis activation. Here, we investigate sex differences in synaptic transmission and plasticity in PNCs following the application of the stress-associated neurotransmitter norepinephrine (NE) in a rat model of AUD.