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Lehner T, Gao B, Mackowiak B. Alcohol metabolism in alcohol use disorder: a potential therapeutic target. Alcohol Alcohol 2024; 59:agad077. [PMID: 37950904 PMCID: PMC10783952 DOI: 10.1093/alcalc/agad077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2023] [Revised: 10/21/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 11/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Ethanol metabolism plays an essential role in how the body perceives and experiences alcohol consumption, and evidence suggests that modulation of ethanol metabolism can alter the risk for alcohol use disorder (AUD). In this review, we explore how ethanol metabolism, mainly via alcohol dehydrogenase and aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2), contributes to drinking behaviors by integrating preclinical and clinical findings. We discuss how alcohol dehydrogenase and ALDH2 polymorphisms change the risk for AUD, and whether we can harness that knowledge to design interventions for AUD that alter ethanol metabolism. We detail the use of disulfiram, RNAi strategies, and kudzu/isoflavones to inhibit ALDH2 and increase acetaldehyde, ideally leading to decreases in drinking behavior. In addition, we cover recent preclinical evidence suggesting that strategies other than increasing acetaldehyde-mediated aversion can decrease ethanol consumption, providing other potential metabolism-centric therapeutic targets. However, modulating ethanol metabolism has inherent risks, and we point out some of the key areas in which more data are needed to mitigate these potential adverse effects. Finally, we present our opinions on the future of treating AUD by the modulation of ethanol metabolism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taylor Lehner
- Laboratory of Liver Diseases, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, 5625 Fishers Lane, Bethesda, MD 20892, United States
| | - Bin Gao
- Laboratory of Liver Diseases, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, 5625 Fishers Lane, Bethesda, MD 20892, United States
| | - Bryan Mackowiak
- Laboratory of Liver Diseases, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, 5625 Fishers Lane, Bethesda, MD 20892, United States
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2
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Quintanilla ME, Israel Y. Role of Metabolism on Alcohol Preference, Addiction, and Treatment. Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2023. [PMID: 37221350 DOI: 10.1007/7854_2023_422] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Studies presented in this chapter show that: (1) in the brain, ethanol is metabolized by catalase to acetaldehyde, which condenses with dopamine forming salsolinol; (2) acetaldehyde-derived salsolinol increases the release of dopamine mediating, via opioid receptors, the reinforcing effects of ethanol during the acquisition of ethanol consumption, while (3) brain acetaldehyde does not influence the maintenance of chronic ethanol intake, it is suggested that a learned cue-induced hyperglutamatergic system takes precedence over the dopaminergic system. However, (4) following a prolonged ethanol deprivation, the generation of acetaldehyde in the brain again plays a role, contributing to the increase in ethanol intake observed during ethanol re-access, called the alcohol deprivation effect (ADE), a model of relapse behavior; (5) naltrexone inhibits the high ethanol intake seen in the ADE condition, suggesting that acetaldehyde-derived salsolinol via opioid receptors also contributes to the relapse-like drinking behavior. The reader is referred to glutamate-mediated mechanisms that trigger the cue-associated alcohol-seeking and that also contribute to triggering relapse.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Elena Quintanilla
- Molecular and Clinical Pharmacology Program, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile.
| | - Yedy Israel
- Molecular and Clinical Pharmacology Program, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile
- Centro de Medicina Regenerativa, ICM Clinica Alemana-Universidad de Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile
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3
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Avances en terapia génica en humanos: algunos conceptos básicos y un recorrido histórico. REVISTA MÉDICA CLÍNICA LAS CONDES 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.rmclc.2022.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
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4
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Mesenchymal stem cells as new perspective for the treatment of alcohol use disorder. Gene Ther 2020; 27:471-473. [PMID: 32107474 DOI: 10.1038/s41434-020-0133-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2019] [Revised: 02/10/2020] [Accepted: 02/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Matsumura Y, Stiles KM, Reid J, Frenk EZ, Cronin S, Pagovich OE, Crystal RG. Gene Therapy Correction of Aldehyde Dehydrogenase 2 Deficiency. Mol Ther Methods Clin Dev 2019; 15:72-82. [PMID: 31649957 PMCID: PMC6804850 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtm.2019.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2019] [Accepted: 08/15/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) deficiency causes "Asian flush syndrome," presenting as alcohol-induced facial flushing, tachycardia, nausea, and headaches. One of the most common hereditary enzyme deficiencies, it affects 35%-40% of East Asians and 8% of the world population. ALDH2 is the key enzyme in ethanol metabolism; with ethanol challenge, the common ALDH2*2 (E487K) mutation results in accumulation of toxic acetaldehyde. ALDH2*2 heterozygotes have increased risk for upper digestive tract cancers, compounded by smoking and drinking alcohol. We hypothesized that a one-time administration of an adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene transfer vector expressing the human ALDH2 coding sequence (AAVrh.10hALDH2) would correct the deficiency state. AAVrh.10hALDH2 was administered intravenously to Aldh2 knockout (Aldh2 -/-) and Aldh2 E487K knockin homozygous (Aldh2 E487K+/+) mice. Following acute ethanol ingestion, untreated ALDH2-deficient mice had elevated acetaldehyde levels and performed poorly in behavioral tests. In contrast, treated Aldh2 -/- and Aldh2 E487K+/+ mice had lower serum acetaldehyde levels and improved behavior. Thus, in vivo AAV-mediated ALDH2 therapy may reverse the deficiency state in ALDH2*2 individuals, eliminating the Asian flush syndrome and reducing the risk for associated disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuki Matsumura
- Department of Genetic Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Katie M. Stiles
- Department of Genetic Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jasmine Reid
- Department of Genetic Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Esther Z. Frenk
- Department of Genetic Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Samantha Cronin
- Department of Genetic Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Odelya E. Pagovich
- Department of Genetic Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ronald G. Crystal
- Department of Genetic Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
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6
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Gene and cell therapy on the acquisition and relapse-like binge drinking in a model of alcoholism: translational options. Gene Ther 2019; 26:407-417. [DOI: 10.1038/s41434-019-0064-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2018] [Revised: 02/06/2019] [Accepted: 02/11/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
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7
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Fernández MS, Báez B, Bordón A, Espinosa L, Martínez E, Pautassi RM. Short-term selection for high and low ethanol intake yields differential sensitivity to ethanol's motivational effects and anxiety-like responses in adolescent Wistar rats. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2017; 79:220-233. [PMID: 28663116 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2017.06.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2017] [Revised: 05/25/2017] [Accepted: 06/24/2017] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Alcohol use disorders are modulated by genetic factors, but the identification of specific genes and their concomitant biological changes that are associated with a higher risk for these disorders has proven difficult. Alterations in the sensitivity to the motivational effects of ethanol may be one way by which genes modulate the initiation and escalation of ethanol intake. Rats and mice have been selectively bred for high and low ethanol consumption during adulthood. However, selective breeding programs for ethanol intake have not focused on adolescence. This phase of development is associated with the initiation and escalation of ethanol intake and characterized by an increase in the sensitivity to ethanol's appetitive effects and a decrease in the sensitivity to ethanol's aversive effects compared with adulthood. The present study performed short-term behavioral selection to select rat lines that diverge in the expression of ethanol drinking during adolescence. A progenitor nucleus of Wistar rats (F0) and filial generation 1 (F1), F2, and F3 adolescent rats were derived from parents that were selected for high (STDRHI) and low (STDRLO) ethanol consumption during adolescence and were tested for ethanol intake and responsivity to ethanol's motivational effects. STDRHI rats exhibited significantly greater ethanol intake and preference than STDRLO rats. Compared with STDRLO rats, STDRHI F2 and F3 rats exhibited a blunted response to ethanol in the conditioned taste aversion test. F2 and F3 STDRHI rats but not STDRLO rats exhibited ethanol-induced motor stimulation. STDRHI rats exhibited avoidance of the white compartment of the light-dark box, a reduction of locomotion, and a reduction of saccharin consumption, suggesting an anxiety-prone phenotype. The results suggest that the genetic risk for enhanced ethanol intake during adolescence is associated with lower sensitivity to the aversive effects of ethanol, heightened reactivity to ethanol's stimulating effects, and enhanced innate anxiety.
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Affiliation(s)
- Macarena Soledad Fernández
- Instituto de Investigación Médica M. y M. Ferreyra, INIMEC-CONICET, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba C.P. 5000, Argentina; Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba C.P. 5000, Argentina
| | - Bárbara Báez
- Instituto de Investigación Médica M. y M. Ferreyra, INIMEC-CONICET, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba C.P. 5000, Argentina
| | - Ana Bordón
- Instituto de Investigación Médica M. y M. Ferreyra, INIMEC-CONICET, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba C.P. 5000, Argentina
| | - Laura Espinosa
- Instituto de Investigación Médica M. y M. Ferreyra, INIMEC-CONICET, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba C.P. 5000, Argentina
| | - Eliana Martínez
- Instituto de Investigación Médica M. y M. Ferreyra, INIMEC-CONICET, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba C.P. 5000, Argentina
| | - Ricardo Marcos Pautassi
- Instituto de Investigación Médica M. y M. Ferreyra, INIMEC-CONICET, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba C.P. 5000, Argentina; Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba C.P. 5000, Argentina.
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Bell RL, Hauser SR, Liang T, Sari Y, Maldonado-Devincci A, Rodd ZA. Rat animal models for screening medications to treat alcohol use disorders. Neuropharmacology 2017; 122:201-243. [PMID: 28215999 PMCID: PMC5659204 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2017.02.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/2017] [Revised: 02/02/2017] [Accepted: 02/05/2017] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
The purpose of this review is to present animal research models that can be used to screen and/or repurpose medications for the treatment of alcohol abuse and dependence. The focus will be on rats and in particular selectively bred rats. Brief introductions discuss various aspects of the clinical picture, which provide characteristics of individuals with alcohol use disorders (AUDs) to model in animals. Following this, multiple selectively bred rat lines will be described and evaluated in the context of animal models used to screen medications to treat AUDs. Next, common behavioral tests for drug efficacy will be discussed particularly as they relate to stages in the addiction cycle. Tables highlighting studies that have tested the effects of compounds using the respective techniques are included. Wherever possible the Tables are organized chronologically in ascending order to describe changes in the focus of research on AUDs over time. In general, high ethanol-consuming selectively bred rats have been used to test a wide range of compounds. Older studies usually followed neurobiological findings in the selected lines that supported an association with a propensity for high ethanol intake. Most of these tests evaluated the compound's effects on the maintenance of ethanol drinking. Very few compounds have been tested during ethanol-seeking and/or relapse and fewer still have assessed their effects during the acquisition of AUDs. Overall, while a substantial number of neurotransmitter and neuromodulatory system targets have been assessed; the roles of sex- and age-of-animal, as well as the acquisition of AUDs, ethanol-seeking and relapse continue to be factors and behaviors needing further study. This article is part of the Special Issue entitled "Alcoholism".
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard L Bell
- Indiana University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA.
| | - Sheketha R Hauser
- Indiana University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA
| | - Tiebing Liang
- Indiana University School of Medicine, Department of Gastroenterology, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA
| | - Youssef Sari
- University of Toledo, Department of Pharmacology, Toledo, OH 43614, USA
| | | | - Zachary A Rodd
- Indiana University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA
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Rivera-Meza M, Muñoz D, Jerez E, Quintanilla ME, Salinas-Luypaert C, Fernandez K, Karahanian E. Fenofibrate Administration Reduces Alcohol and Saccharin Intake in Rats: Possible Effects at Peripheral and Central Levels. Front Behav Neurosci 2017; 11:133. [PMID: 28769774 PMCID: PMC5509805 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2017.00133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2017] [Accepted: 07/03/2017] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
We have previously shown that the administration of fenofibrate to high-drinker UChB rats markedly reduces voluntary ethanol intake. Fenofibrate is a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARα) agonist, which induces the proliferation of peroxisomes in the liver, leading to increases in catalase levels that result in acetaldehyde accumulation at aversive levels in the blood when animals consume ethanol. In these new studies, we aimed to investigate if the effect of fenofibrate on ethanol intake is produced exclusively in the liver (increasing catalase and systemic levels of acetaldehyde) or there might be additional effects at central level. High drinker rats (UChB) were allowed to voluntary drink 10% ethanol for 2 months. Afterward, a daily dose of fenofibrate (25, 50 or 100 mg/kg/day) or vehicle (as control) was administered orally for 14 days. Voluntary ethanol intake was recorded daily. After that time, animals were deprived of ethanol access for 24 h and administered with an oral dose of ethanol (1 g/kg) for acetaldehyde determination in blood. Fenofibrate reduced ethanol voluntary intake by 60%, in chronically drinking rats, at the three doses tested. Acetaldehyde in the blood rose up to between 80 μM and 100 μM. Considering the reduction of ethanol consumption, blood acetaldehyde levels and body weight evolution, the better results were obtained at a dose of 50 mg fenofibrate/kg/day. This dose of fenofibrate also reduced the voluntary intake of 0.2% saccharin by 35% and increased catalase levels 2.5-fold in the liver but showed no effects on catalase levels in the brain. To further study if fenofibrate administration changes the motivational properties of ethanol, a conditioned-place preference experiment was carried out. Animals treated with fenofibrate (50 mg/kg/day) did not develop ethanol-conditioned place preference (CPP).In an additional experiment, chronically ethanol-drinking rats underwent two cycles of ethanol deprivation/re-access, and fenofibrate (50 mg/kg/day) was given only in deprivation periods; under this paradigm, fenofibrate was also able to generate a prolonged (30 days) decreasing of ethanol consumption, suggesting some effect beyond the acetaldehyde-generated aversion. In summary, reduction of ethanol intake by fenofibrate appears to be a consequence of a combination of catalase induction in the liver and central pharmacological effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario Rivera-Meza
- Department of Pharmacological and Toxicological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of ChileSantiago, Chile
| | - Daniel Muñoz
- Center for Biomedical Research, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Autónoma de ChileSantiago, Chile
| | - Erik Jerez
- Department of Pharmacological and Toxicological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of ChileSantiago, Chile
| | - María E Quintanilla
- Program of Molecular and Clinical Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of ChileSantiago, Chile
| | - Catalina Salinas-Luypaert
- Department of Pharmacological and Toxicological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of ChileSantiago, Chile
| | - Katia Fernandez
- CIB, Faculty of Health and Dentistry, Universidad Diego PortalesSantiago, Chile
| | - Eduardo Karahanian
- Center for Biomedical Research, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Autónoma de ChileSantiago, Chile.,Research Center for the Study of Alcohol Drinking Behavior in Adolescents, Universidad Autónoma de ChileSantiago, Chile
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Sanchez AC, Li C, Andrews B, Asenjo JA, Samulski RJ. AAV Gene Therapy for Alcoholism: Inhibition of Mitochondrial Aldehyde Dehydrogenase Enzyme Expression in Hepatoma Cells. Hum Gene Ther 2017; 28:717-725. [PMID: 28578603 DOI: 10.1089/hum.2017.043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Most ethanol is broken down in the liver in two steps by alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2) enzymes, which metabolize down ethanol into acetaldehyde and then acetate. Some individuals from the Asian population who carry a mutation in the aldehyde dehydrogenase gene (ALDH2*2) cannot metabolize acetaldehyde as efficiently, producing strong effects, including facial flushing, dizziness, hypotension, and palpitations. This results in an aversion to alcohol intake and protection against alcoholism. The large prevalence of this mutation in the human population strongly suggests that modulation of ALDH2 expression by genetic technologies could result in a similar phenotype. scAAV2 vectors encoding ALDH2 small hairpin RNA (shRNA) were utilized to validate this hypothesis by silencing ALDH2 gene expression in human cell lines. Human cell lines HEK-293 and HepG2 were transduced with scAAV2/shRNA, showing a reduction in ALDH2 RNA and protein expression with the two viral concentration assayed (1 × 104 and 1 × 105 vg/cell) at two different time points. In both cell lines, ALDH2 RNA levels were reduced by 90% and protein expression was inhibited by 90% and 52%, respectively, 5 days post infection. Transduced HepG2 VL17A cells (ADH+) exposed to ethanol resulted in a 50% increase in acetaldehyde levels. These results suggest that gene therapy could be a useful tool for the treatment of alcoholism by knocking down ALDH2 expression using shRNA technology delivered by AAV vectors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anamaria C Sanchez
- 1 Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering (CeBiB), Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Chile , Santiago, Chile
| | - Chengwen Li
- 2 Gene Therapy Center, University of North Carolina , Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Barbara Andrews
- 1 Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering (CeBiB), Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Chile , Santiago, Chile
| | - Juan A Asenjo
- 1 Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering (CeBiB), Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Chile , Santiago, Chile
| | - R Jude Samulski
- 2 Gene Therapy Center, University of North Carolina , Chapel Hill, North Carolina
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Mattalloni MS, Deza-Ponzio R, Albrecht PA, Cancela LM, Virgolini MB. Developmental lead exposure induces opposite effects on ethanol intake and locomotion in response to central vs. systemic cyanamide administration. Alcohol 2017; 58:1-11. [PMID: 28109342 DOI: 10.1016/j.alcohol.2016.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2016] [Revised: 10/25/2016] [Accepted: 11/07/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Lead (Pb) is a developmental neurotoxicant that elicits differential responses to drugs of abuse. Particularly, ethanol consumption has been demonstrated to be increased as a consequence of environmental Pb exposure, with catalase (CAT) and brain acetaldehyde (ACD, the first metabolite of ethanol) playing a role. The present study sought to interfere with ethanol metabolism by inhibiting ALDH2 (mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase) activity in both liver and brain from control and Pb-exposed rats as a strategy to accumulate ACD, a substance that plays a major role in the drug's reinforcing and/or aversive effects. To evaluate the impact on a 2-h chronic voluntary ethanol intake test, developmentally Pb-exposed and control rats were administered with cyanamide (CY, an ALDH inhibitor) either systemically or intracerebroventricularly (i.c.v.) on the last 4 sessions of the experiment. Furthermore, on the last session and after locomotor activity was assessed, all animals were sacrificed to obtain brain and liver samples for ALDH2 and CAT activity determination. Systemic CY administration reduced the elevated ethanol intake already reported in the Pb-exposed animals (but not in the controls) accompanied by liver (but not brain) ALDH2 inactivation. On the other hand, a 0.3 mg i.c.v. CY administration enhanced both ethanol intake and locomotor activity accompanied by brain ALDH2 inactivation in control animals, while an increase in ethanol consumption was also observed in the Pb-exposed group, although in the absence of brain ALDH2 blockade. No changes were observed in CAT activity as a consequence of CY administration. These results support the participation of liver and brain ACD in ethanol intake and locomotor activity, responses that are modulated by developmental Pb exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mara Soledad Mattalloni
- IFEC - CONICET, Haya de la Torre y Medina Allende, Ciudad Universitaria, 5016, Córdoba, Argentina; Departamento de Farmacología, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Haya de la Torre y Medina Allende, Ciudad Universitaria, 5016, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Romina Deza-Ponzio
- IFEC - CONICET, Haya de la Torre y Medina Allende, Ciudad Universitaria, 5016, Córdoba, Argentina; Departamento de Farmacología, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Haya de la Torre y Medina Allende, Ciudad Universitaria, 5016, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Paula Alejandra Albrecht
- IFEC - CONICET, Haya de la Torre y Medina Allende, Ciudad Universitaria, 5016, Córdoba, Argentina; Departamento de Farmacología, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Haya de la Torre y Medina Allende, Ciudad Universitaria, 5016, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Liliana Marina Cancela
- IFEC - CONICET, Haya de la Torre y Medina Allende, Ciudad Universitaria, 5016, Córdoba, Argentina; Departamento de Farmacología, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Haya de la Torre y Medina Allende, Ciudad Universitaria, 5016, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Miriam Beatriz Virgolini
- IFEC - CONICET, Haya de la Torre y Medina Allende, Ciudad Universitaria, 5016, Córdoba, Argentina; Departamento de Farmacología, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Haya de la Torre y Medina Allende, Ciudad Universitaria, 5016, Córdoba, Argentina.
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Sapag A, Irrazábal T, Lobos-González L, Muñoz-Brauning CR, Quintanilla ME, Tampier L. Hairpin Ribozyme Genes Curtail Alcohol Drinking: from Rational Design to in vivo Effects in the Rat. MOLECULAR THERAPY-NUCLEIC ACIDS 2016; 5:e335. [PMID: 27404720 PMCID: PMC5330938 DOI: 10.1038/mtna.2016.41] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2016] [Accepted: 05/12/2016] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Ribozyme genes were designed to reduce voluntary alcohol drinking in a rat model of alcohol dependence. Acetaldehyde generated from alcohol in the liver is metabolized by the mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2) such that diminishing ALDH2 activity leads to the aversive effects of blood acetaldehyde upon alcohol intake. A stepwise approach was followed to design genes encoding ribozymes targeted to the rat ALDH2 mRNA. In vitro studies of accessibility to oligonucleotides identified suitable target sites in the mRNA, one of which fulfilled hammerhead and hairpin ribozyme requirements (CGGUC). Ribozyme genes delivered in plasmid constructs were tested in rat cells in culture. While the hairpin ribozyme reduced ALDH2 activity 56% by cleavage and blockade (P < 0.0001), the hammerhead ribozyme elicited minor effects by blockade. The hairpin ribozyme was tested in vivo by adenoviral gene delivery to UChB alcohol drinker rats. Ethanol intake was curtailed 47% for 34 days (P < 0.0001), while blood acetaldehyde more than doubled upon ethanol administration and ALDH2 activity dropped 25% in liver homogenates, not affecting other ALDH isoforms. Thus, hairpin ribozymes targeted to 16 nt in the ALDH2 mRNA provide durable and specific effects in vivo, representing an improvement on previous work and encouraging development of gene therapy for alcoholism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amalia Sapag
- Laboratory of Gene Pharmacotherapy, Department of Pharmacological and Toxicological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Thergiory Irrazábal
- Laboratory of Gene Pharmacotherapy, Department of Pharmacological and Toxicological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Lorena Lobos-González
- Laboratory of Gene Pharmacotherapy, Department of Pharmacological and Toxicological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Carlos R Muñoz-Brauning
- Laboratory of Gene Pharmacotherapy, Department of Pharmacological and Toxicological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - María Elena Quintanilla
- Molecular and Clinical Pharmacology Programme, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Lutske Tampier
- Molecular and Clinical Pharmacology Programme, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
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Camarini R, Pautassi RM. Behavioral sensitization to ethanol: Neural basis and factors that influence its acquisition and expression. Brain Res Bull 2016; 125:53-78. [PMID: 27093941 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2016.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2015] [Revised: 04/07/2016] [Accepted: 04/08/2016] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Ethanol-induced behavioral sensitization (EBS) was first described in 1980, approximately 10 years after the phenomenon was described for psychostimulants. Ethanol acts on γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutamate receptors as an allosteric agonist and antagonist, respectively, but it also affects many other molecular targets. The multiplicity of factors involved in the behavioral and neurochemical effects of ethanol and the ensuing complexity may explain much of the apparent disparate results, found across different labs, regarding ethanol-induced behavioral sensitization. Although the mesocorticolimbic dopamine system plays an important role in EBS, we provide evidence of the involvement of other neurotransmitter systems, mainly the glutamatergic, GABAergic, and opioidergic systems. This review also analyses the neural underpinnings (e.g., induction of cellular transcription factors such as cyclic adenosine monophosphate response element binding protein and growth factors, such as the brain-derived neurotrophic factor) and other factors that influence the phenomenon, including age, sex, dose, and protocols of drug administration. One of the reasons that make EBS an attractive phenomenon is the assumption, firmly based on empirical evidence, that EBS and addiction-related processes have common molecular and neural basis. Therefore, EBS has been used as a model of addiction processes. We discuss the association between different measures of ethanol-induced reward and EBS. Parallels between the pharmacological basis of EBS and acute motor effects of ethanol are also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rosana Camarini
- Departamento de Farmacologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade de São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
| | - Ricardo Marcos Pautassi
- Instituto de Investigaciones Médicas M. y M. Ferreyra, Córdoba (IMMF-CONICET-Universidad Nacional de Córdoba), Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Argentina
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Blum K, Thanos PK, Badgaiyan RD, Febo M, Oscar-Berman M, Fratantonio J, Demotrovics Z, Gold MS. Neurogenetics and gene therapy for reward deficiency syndrome: are we going to the Promised Land? Expert Opin Biol Ther 2015; 15:973-85. [PMID: 25974314 DOI: 10.1517/14712598.2015.1045871] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Addiction is a substantial health issue with limited treatment options approved by the FDA and as such currently available. The advent of neuroimaging techniques that link neurochemical and neurogenetic mechanisms to the reward circuitry brain function provides a framework for potential genomic-based therapies. AREAS COVERED Through candidate and genome-wide association studies approaches, many gene polymorphisms and clusters have been implicated in drug, food and behavioral dependence linked by the common rubric reward deficiency syndrome (RDS). The results of selective studies that include the role of epigenetics, noncoding micro RNAs in RDS behaviors especially drug abuse involving alcohol, opioids, cocaine, nicotine, pain and feeding are reviewed in this article. New targets for addiction treatment and relapse prevention, treatment alternatives such as gene therapy in animal models, and pharmacogenomics and nutrigenomics methods to manipulate transcription and gene expression are explored. EXPERT OPINION The recognition of the clinical benefit of early genetic testing to determine addiction risk stratification and dopaminergic agonistic, rather than antagonistic therapies are potentially the genomic-based wave of the future. In addition, further development, especially in gene transfer work and viral vector identification, could make gene therapy for RDS a possibility in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kenneth Blum
- Department of Psychiatry & McKnight Brain Institute, University of Florida College of Medicine , Gainesville, FL , USA
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15
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Israel Y, Quintanilla ME, Karahanian E, Rivera-Meza M, Herrera-Marschitz M. The "first hit" toward alcohol reinforcement: role of ethanol metabolites. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2015; 39:776-86. [PMID: 25828063 DOI: 10.1111/acer.12709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2015] [Accepted: 02/22/2015] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
This review analyzes literature that describes the behavioral effects of 2 metabolites of ethanol (EtOH): acetaldehyde and salsolinol (a condensation product of acetaldehyde and dopamine) generated in the brain. These metabolites are self-administered into specific brain areas by animals, showing strong reinforcing effects. A wealth of evidence shows that EtOH, a drug consumed to attain millimolar concentrations, generates brain metabolites that are reinforcing at micromolar and nanomolar concentrations. Salsolinol administration leads to marked increases in voluntary EtOH intake, an effect inhibited by mu-opioid receptor blockers. In animals that have ingested EtOH chronically, the maintenance of alcohol intake is no longer influenced by EtOH metabolites, as intake is taken over by other brain systems. However, after EtOH withdrawal brain acetaldehyde has a major role in promoting binge-like drinking in the condition known as the "alcohol deprivation effect"; a condition seen in animals that have ingested alcohol chronically, are deprived of EtOH for extended periods, and are allowed EtOH re-access. The review also analyzes the behavioral effects of acetate, a metabolite that enters the brain and is responsible for motor incoordination at low doses of EtOH. Also discussed are the paradoxical effects of systemic acetaldehyde. Overall, evidence strongly suggests that brain-generated EtOH metabolites play a major role in the early ("first-hit") development of alcohol reinforcement and in the generation of relapse-like drinking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yedy Israel
- Program of Molecular and Clinical Pharmacology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile
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16
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Morozova TV, Mackay TFC, Anholt RRH. Genetics and genomics of alcohol sensitivity. Mol Genet Genomics 2014; 289:253-69. [PMID: 24395673 PMCID: PMC4037586 DOI: 10.1007/s00438-013-0808-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2013] [Accepted: 12/22/2013] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
Alcohol abuse and alcoholism incur a heavy socioeconomic cost in many countries. Both genetic and environmental factors contribute to variation in the inebriating effects of alcohol and alcohol addiction among individuals within and across populations. From a genetics perspective, alcohol sensitivity is a quantitative trait determined by the cumulative effects of multiple segregating genes and their interactions with the environment. This review summarizes insights from model organisms as well as human populations that represent our current understanding of the genetic and genomic underpinnings that govern alcohol metabolism and the sedative and addictive effects of alcohol on the nervous system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tatiana V. Morozova
- Department of Biological Sciences and W. M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Box 7617, Raleigh, NC 27695-7617 USA
| | - Trudy F. C. Mackay
- Department of Biological Sciences and W. M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Box 7617, Raleigh, NC 27695-7617 USA
| | - Robert R. H. Anholt
- Department of Biological Sciences and W. M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Box 7617, Raleigh, NC 27695-7617 USA
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17
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Deehan GA, Hauser SR, Wilden JA, Truitt WA, Rodd ZA. Elucidating the biological basis for the reinforcing actions of alcohol in the mesolimbic dopamine system: the role of active metabolites of alcohol. Front Behav Neurosci 2013; 7:104. [PMID: 23986666 PMCID: PMC3750600 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2013.00104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2013] [Accepted: 07/27/2013] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The development of successful pharmacotherapeutics for the treatment of alcoholism is predicated upon understanding the biological action of alcohol. A limitation of the alcohol research field has been examining the effects of alcohol only and ignoring the multiple biological active metabolites of alcohol. The concept that alcohol is a "pro-drug" is not new. Alcohol is readily metabolized to acetaldehyde within the brain. Acetaldehyde is a highly reactive compound that forms a number of condensation products, including salsolinol and iso-salsolinol (acetaldehyde and dopamine). Recent experiments have established that numerous metabolites of alcohol have direct CNS action, and could, in part or whole, mediate the reinforcing actions of alcohol within the mesolimbic dopamine system. The mesolimbic dopamine system originates in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and projects to forebrain regions that include the nucleus accumbens (Acb) and the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and is thought to be the neurocircuitry governing the rewarding properties of drugs of abuse. Within this neurocircuitry there is convincing evidence that; (1) biologically active metabolites of alcohol can directly or indirectly increase the activity of VTA dopamine neurons, (2) alcohol and alcohol metabolites are reinforcing within the mesolimbic dopamine system, (3) inhibiting the alcohol metabolic pathway inhibits the biological consequences of alcohol exposure, (4) alcohol consumption can be reduced by inhibiting/attenuating the alcohol metabolic pathway in the mesolimbic dopamine system, (5) alcohol metabolites can alter neurochemical levels within the mesolimbic dopamine system, and (6) alcohol interacts with alcohol metabolites to enhance the actions of both compounds. The data indicate that there is a positive relationship between alcohol and alcohol metabolites in regulating the biological consequences of consuming alcohol and the potential of alcohol use escalating to alcoholism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerald A Deehan
- Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatric Research, Indiana University, School of Medicine Indianapolis, IN, USA
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18
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Israel Y, Rivera-Meza M, Karahanian E, Quintanilla ME, Tampier L, Morales P, Herrera-Marschitz M. Gene specific modifications unravel ethanol and acetaldehyde actions. Front Behav Neurosci 2013; 7:80. [PMID: 23847486 PMCID: PMC3703538 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2013.00080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2013] [Accepted: 06/18/2013] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Ethanol is metabolized into acetaldehyde mainly by the action of alcohol dehydrogenase in the liver, while mainly by the action of catalase in the brain. Aldehyde dehydrogenase-2 metabolizes acetaldehyde into acetate in both organs. Gene specific modifications reviewed here show that an increased liver generation of acetaldehyde (by transduction of a gene coding for a high-activity liver alcohol dehydrogenase ADH1*B2) leads to increased blood acetaldehyde levels and aversion to ethanol in animals. Similarly aversive is an increased acetaldehyde level resulting from the inhibition of liver aldehyde dehydrogenase-2 (ALDH2) synthesis (by an antisense coding gene against aldh2 mRNA). The situation is diametrically different when acetaldehyde is generated in the brain. When the brain ventral tegmental area (VTA) is endowed with an increased ability to generate acetaldehyde (by transfection of liver rADH) the reinforcing effects of ethanol are increased, while a highly specific inhibition of catalase synthesis (by transduction of a shRNA anti catalase mRNA) virtually abolishes the reinforcing effects of ethanol as seen by a complete abolition of ethanol intake in rats bred for generations as high ethanol drinkers. Data shows two divergent effects of increases in acetaldehyde generation: aversive in the periphery but reinforcing in the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yedy Israel
- Faculty of Medicine, Molecular and Clinical Pharmacology Program, University of Chile Santiago, Chile ; Department of Pharmacological and Toxicological Chemistry, University of Chile Santiago, Chile
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Abstract
Alcohol consumption dates back to the Neolithic period, and alcohol dependence contributes substantially to the current global burden of disease. Despite this, optimal therapies and preventive strategies are lacking. Formal genetic studies of alcohol dependence have shown that genetic factors play as large a role in disease etiology as environmental factors. Molecular genetic studies may identify causal factors and facilitate the development of novel preventive and therapeutic approaches. Whereas earlier studies involved the use of linkage- and candidate-gene approaches, recent years have witnessed the introduction of genome-wide association studies (GWAS). The present review provides a brief overview of the findings of formal genetic studies, summarizes the results of earlier molecular-genetic investigations, and presents a detailed overview of all published GWAS in the field of alcohol dependence research. To date, few genome-wide significant findings have been reported. However, through the polygenic approach, GWAS have both confirmed the existence of a multitude of novel risk genes and indicated interesting new candidates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcella Rietschel
- Department of Genetic Epidemiology in Psychiatry, Central Institute of Mental Health Mannheim, University Medical Center Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Germany.
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20
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Lee HT, Jung KH, Baek M, Chung MK, Choi MR, Chai YG. Artificial microRNA-based aldehyde dehydrogenase gene silencing in mice. Mol Cell Toxicol 2012. [DOI: 10.1007/s13273-012-0024-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
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Rivera-Meza M, Quintanilla ME, Tampier L. Reduction of ethanol consumption in alcohol-preferring rats by dual expression gene transfer. Alcohol Alcohol 2012; 47:102-8. [PMID: 22214999 DOI: 10.1093/alcalc/agr161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
AIMS To mimic, in an animal model of alcoholism, the protective phenotype against alcohol consumption observed in humans carrying a fast alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH1B*2) and an inactive aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2*2). METHODS We developed a multiple expression cassette adenoviral vector (AdV-ADH/asALDH2) encoding both a fast rat ADH and an antisense RNA against rat ALDH2. A control adenoviral vector (AdV-C) containing intronic non-coding DNA was also developed. These adenoviral vectors were administered intravenously to rats bred as high alcohol-drinkers (University of Chile bibulous) that were previously rendered alcohol dependent by a 75-day period of voluntary 10% ethanol intake. RESULTS Animals administered AdV-ADH/asALDH2 showed a 176% increase in liver ADH activity, whereas liver ALDH2 activity was reduced by 24%, and upon the administration of a dose of ethanol (1 g/kg, i.p.), these showed arterial acetaldehyde levels that were 400% higher than those of animals administered AdV-C. Rats that received the AdV-ADH/asALDH2 vector reduced by 60% their voluntary ethanol intake versus controls. CONCLUSION This study provides evidence that the simultaneous increase of liver ADH and a reduction of ALDH activity by gene transfer could constitute a potential therapeutic strategy for the treatment of alcoholism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario Rivera-Meza
- Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Program of Molecular and Clinical Pharmacology, Laboratory of Pharmacogenetics of Alcoholism, University of Chile, Av. Independencia 1027, Independencia, Santiago, Chile.
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22
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Kortunay S, Köseler A, Ozdemir F, Atalay EÖ. Association of a genetic polymorphism of the alcohol-metabolizing enzyme ADH1C with alcohol dependence: results of a case-control study. Eur Addict Res 2012; 18:161-6. [PMID: 22414625 DOI: 10.1159/000336314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2011] [Accepted: 01/03/2012] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Alcohol dependence causes serious problems which may be influenced by genetic factors associated with alcohol metabolism. The aim was to investigate the allelic and genotypic difference in distribution of a polymorphism in alcohol dehydrogenase 1C gene (ADH1C) between alcohol-dependent individuals and controls, and to examine if these genotypes were associated with the age at which the patient became alcohol-dependent. METHODS We conducted a case-control study including 90 alcohol-dependent cases and 100 historic controls. The genomic DNA was isolated and the alleles were analyzed with an RFLP. RESULTS The ADH1C*1 allele frequencies were 0.89 (95% CI 0.84-0.91) in controls and 0.68 (95% CI 0.61-0.74) in alcohol-dependent patients. The frequencies of the ADH1C*2 allele were 0.11 (95% CI 0.07-0.14) and 0.32 (95% CI 0.25-0.38) among controls and alcohol-dependent patients, respectively (p < 0.0001). The ADH1C*1/*1 genotype frequency was significantly higher in the control group (77%) compared to that of the alcohol-dependents (51%, p < 0.0001). The ADH1C*1/*2 genotype frequency was significantly lower in the control group (23%) compared to that of the alcohol-dependents (42%, p < 0.0001). We obtained no statistically significant difference among the ADH1C genotype groups regarding age. CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that a significantly higher presence of ADH1C*2 allele is associated with alcohol dependence in a Turkish population. Studies with other related polymorphisms are needed to more precisely estimate the association of alcohol dependence with ADH1C.
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Affiliation(s)
- Selim Kortunay
- Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Pamukkale University, Denizli, Turkey.
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23
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Correa M, Salamone JD, Segovia KN, Pardo M, Longoni R, Spina L, Peana AT, Vinci S, Acquas E. Piecing together the puzzle of acetaldehyde as a neuroactive agent. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2012; 36:404-30. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2011.07.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2011] [Revised: 07/14/2011] [Accepted: 07/21/2011] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
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Quintanilla ME, Tampier L, Karahanian E, Rivera-Meza M, Herrera-Marschitz M, Israel Y. Reward and relapse: complete gene-induced dissociation in an animal model of alcohol dependence. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2011; 36:517-22. [PMID: 21895710 DOI: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2011.01606.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND In animal models of continuous alcohol self-administration, in which physical dependence does not constitute the major factor of ethanol intake, 2 factors likely contribute to the perpetuation of alcohol self-administration: (i) the rewarding effects of ethanol and (ii) the contextual conditioning cues that exist along with the process of self-administration. Present studies are aimed at understanding the relative contribution of these factors on the perpetuation of heavy alcohol self-administration, as an indication of relapse. METHODS Wistar-derived UChB high ethanol drinker rats were allowed access to 10% ethanol and water on a 24-hour basis. In initial studies, an anticatalase shRNA gene-coding lentiviral vector aimed at inhibiting acetaldehyde generation was administered into the ventral tegmental area (VTA) of the animals prior to ethanol access. In subsequent studies, the lentiviral vector was administered to animals, which had consumed ethanol on a 24-hour basis, or a 1-hour basis, after the animals had reached high levels of ethanol intake for 60 to 80 days. In final studies, quinine (0.01%) was added to the ethanol solution to alter the conditioning taste/smell cues of alcohol that animals had chronically ingested. RESULTS Data indicate that the administration of an anticatalase vector into the VTA of naïve animals blocked reward and alcohol self-administration, while it was, nevertheless, inactive in inhibiting alcohol self-administration in rats that had been conditioned to ingest ethanol for over 2 months. The lack of inhibitory effect of the anticatalase vector on ethanol intake in animals that had chronically self-administered ethanol was fully reversed when the contextual conditioning cues of the alcohol solution were changed. CONCLUSIONS Data highlight the importance of conditioning factors in relapse and suggest that only abolishing or blunting it, along with long-lasting pharmacological treatment to reduce ethanol reward, may have protracted effects in reducing alcohol self-administration.
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Affiliation(s)
- María E Quintanilla
- Program of Molecular and Clinical Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Santiago, Chile
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25
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Abstract
There is no indication that gene therapy can be applied in psychiatric patients any time soon. However, there are several promising developments on the level of experimental neuroscience indicating that gene therapy approaches have an effect in animal models of several psychiatric disorders including drug addiction, affective disorders, psychoses and dementia, modifying behavioural parameters via interventions on the molecular and cellular level. However, before gene therapy in psychiatric disorders can be considered on the human level, not only neurobiological and technical problems need to be overcome, but also important ethical questions answered.
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Affiliation(s)
- JOHANNES THOME
- Clinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - FRANK HÄSSLER
- Clinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, Psychosomatics and Neurology in Children and Adolescents, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - VANNA ZACHARIOU
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Medical School, University of Crete, Greece
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26
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Pautassi RM, Camarini R, Quadros IM, Miczek KA, Israel Y. Genetic and environmental influences on ethanol consumption: perspectives from preclinical research. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2010; 34:976-87. [PMID: 20374217 DOI: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2010.01172.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Alcohol use disorders (abuse and dependence, AUD) are multifactorial phenomena, depending on the interplay of environmental and genetic variables. METHOD This review describes current developments in animal research that may help (a) develop gene therapies for the treatment of alcoholism, (b) understand the permissive role of stress on ethanol intake, and (c) elucidate why exposure to ethanol early in life is associated with a greater risk of AUD. RESULTS The polymorphisms found in liver alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) affect the elimination of ethanol and the susceptibility to ethanol intake. A highly active ADH protects against alcoholism, an effect related to a presteady state burst in arterial acetaldehyde. Social stressors, such as repeated early maternal separation or social defeat, exert a permissive effect on ethanol intake, perhaps by altering the normal development of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Ethanol exposure during gestation, infancy, or adolescence increases the likelihood of AUD later in life. Early perception of ethanol's positive and negative (anti-anxiety) reinforcing effects may play a role in this phenomenon. CONCLUSIONS The review underscores the advantages of using preclinical animal models of AUD and highlights points of intersection between the topics to help design a more integrated approach for the study of alcohol-related problems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ricardo M Pautassi
- Instituto de Investigaciones Médicas M. y M. Ferreyra (INIMEC-CONICET), Argentina.
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27
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Cichoż-Lach H, Celiński K, Wojcierowski J, Słomka M, Lis E. Genetic polymorphism of alcohol-metabolizing enzyme and alcohol dependence in Polish men. Braz J Med Biol Res 2010; 43:257-61. [PMID: 20401433 DOI: 10.1590/s0100-879x2010007500006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2009] [Accepted: 01/26/2010] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - E. Lis
- Medical University of Lublin
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28
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Crabbe JC. Review. Neurogenetic studies of alcohol addiction. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2008; 363:3201-11. [PMID: 18640917 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2008.0101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Neurogenetic studies of alcohol dependence have relied substantially on genetic animal models, particularly rodents. Studies of inbred strains, selectively bred lines and mutants bearing genes whose function has been targeted for over or under expression are reviewed. Studies focused on gene expression changes are the most recent contributors to this literature, and some genetic effects may work through epigenetic mechanisms. In a few instances, interesting parallels have been revealed between genetic risk in humans and studies in non-human animal models. Future approaches are likely to be increasingly complex.
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Affiliation(s)
- John C Crabbe
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Portland Alcohol Research Center, Oregon Health & Science University, VA Medical Center R&D 12, 3710 Southwest US Veterans Hospital Road, Portland, OR 97239, USA.
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29
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Boyd KN, O'Buckley TK, Morrow AL. Role of acetaldehyde in ethanol-induced elevation of the neuroactive steroid 3alpha-hydroxy-5alpha-pregnan-20-one in rats. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2008; 32:1774-81. [PMID: 18652594 DOI: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2008.00762.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Systemic ethanol administration increases neuroactive steroid levels that increase ethanol sensitivity. Acetaldehyde is a biologically active compound that may contribute to behavioral and rewarding effects of ethanol. We investigated the role of acetaldehyde in ethanol-induced elevations of 3alpha-hydroxy-5alpha-pregnan-20-one (3alpha,5alpha-THP) levels in cerebral cortex. METHODS Male Sprague-Dawley rats were administered ethanol, and plasma acetaldehyde concentrations were measured by gas chromatography to determine relevant concentrations. Rats were then administered acetaldehyde directly, acetaldehyde plus cyanamide to block its degradation, or ethanol in the presence of inhibitors of ethanol metabolism, to determine effects on 3alpha,5alpha-THP levels in cerebral cortex. RESULTS Ethanol administration (2 g/kg) to rats results in a peak acetaldehyde concentration of 6-7 microM at 10 minutes that remains stable for the duration of the time points tested. Direct administration of acetaldehyde eliciting this plasma concentration does not increase cerebral cortical 3alpha,5alpha-THP levels, and inhibition of ethanol-metabolizing enzymes to modify acetaldehyde formation does not alter ethanol-induced 3alpha,5alpha-THP levels. However, higher doses of acetaldehyde (75 and 100 mg/kg), in the presence of cyanamide to prevent its metabolism, are capable of increasing cortical 3alpha,5alpha-THP levels. CONCLUSIONS Physiological concentrations of acetaldehyde are not responsible for ethanol-induced increases in 3alpha,5alpha-THP, but a synergistic role for acetaldehyde with ethanol may contribute to increases in 3alpha,5alpha-THP levels and ethanol sensitivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin N Boyd
- Curriculum in Toxicology, Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
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Lowe ED, Gao GY, Johnson LN, Keung WM. Structure of daidzin, a naturally occurring anti-alcohol-addiction agent, in complex with human mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase. J Med Chem 2008; 51:4482-7. [PMID: 18613661 DOI: 10.1021/jm800488j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The ALDH2*2 gene encoding the inactive variant form of mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2) protects nearly all carriers of this gene from alcoholism. Inhibition of ALDH2 has hence become a possible strategy to treat alcoholism. The natural product 7-O-glucosyl-4'-hydroxyisoflavone (daidzin), isolated from the kudzu vine ( Peruraria lobata), is a specific inhibitor of ALDH2 and suppresses ethanol consumption. Daidzin is the active principle in a herbal remedy for "alcohol addiction" and provides a lead for the design of improved ALDH2. The structure of daidzin/ALDH2 in complex at 2.4 A resolution shows the isoflavone moiety of daidzin binding close to the aldehyde substrate-binding site in a hydrophobic cleft and the glucosyl function binding to a hydrophobic patch immediately outside the isoflavone-binding pocket. These observations provide an explanation for both the specificity and affinity of daidzin (IC50 =80 nM) and the affinity of analogues with different substituents at the glucosyl position.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward D Lowe
- Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics, University of Oxford, Rex Richards Building, Oxford OX1 3QU, UK.
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31
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW To update the reader with advances in epidemiology, genetics, detection, pathogenesis and therapy of alcohol-related liver disease. RECENT FINDINGS Ill-health due to alcohol abuse is improving in some nations but deteriorating in others. Oxidative and nitrosative stress are key to the pathogenesis of alcoholic liver disease, and there is now greater emphasis than previously on their development and role of cytochrome P450 2E1, on mitochondrial stress and disruption, (including elucidation of mitochondrial protection mechanisms) disturbance of signaling pathways and involvement of extrahepatic mediators like adiponectin. Treatment of alcoholic liver disease has stagnated, but transplantation is still favored and debated for end-stage cirrhosis. SUMMARY Basic and clinical research into the mechanisms of alcoholic liver disease is making headway, but has yet to produce safe and effective therapies for alcoholic hepatitis and for reversing cirrhosis.
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