Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: EC:2.6.1.2 (alanine aminotransferase)
 26,722 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

In the US, about 11% to 20% of patients presenting to general medical clinics are diagnosed as suffering from alcohol abuse or dependence. Alcohol screening in primary care settings, whether in the US or Singapore, can utilise various strategies for the early detection of alcohol problems. This paper briefly reviews several self-reports and screening procedures to assist general practitioners in identifying problem drinkers. The use of CAGE questionnaire, MAST, and its variation, SAAST and the AUDIT, are discussed and evaluated. Likewise, useful biochemical markers of excessive alcohol consumption like the liver enzymes (AST, ALT, GGT), MCV, CDT are described. They can be combined with each other to improve validity or used in conjunction with self-report screening tests for more accurate detection of problem drinkers. In particular, use of the AUDIT for routine screening of alcohol problems in primary care settings is recommended. Selective administration to those with at least two drinks per setting can overcome time constraints. Alternatively, sequential screening utilising the TRAUMA questionnaire with frequency and quantity questions administered to higher frequency drinkers can circumvent concerns about direct questioning. Use of self-reports and when possible, biochemical screening for alcohol problems should be a standard part of primary care practice.
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PMID:What you need to know: detecting alcohol problems in general medical practice. 955 5

The first part of this article is devoted to the metabolism of alcohol and the mechanisms underlying its hepatotoxicity. The second part describes the clinical features of the various patterns of alcohol-related liver disease (ARLD). The third part focuses on the characteristics, semiological value, and limitations of serum markers used in ARLD. Tests used to screen for alcohol abuse (blood alcohol, MCV, GGT, CDT, and FAEE) differ from those used to monitor alcohol withdrawal and to detect early-stage liver disease (ALT, AST, ASTm, alphaGST, and redox status).
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PMID:[Alcohol and liver]. 1060 75

It is well-known that early diagnosis in addiction leads to a better outcome and prevents psychosocial and medical illness and disability as well as costs. It would be important to have a gold standard for the diagnosis for alcoholism because of the consequences of this diagnosis for both the patient and the physician. In the last 15 years there were world-wide efforts to find biological markers for alcoholism and alcohol abuse. The results, however, were rather poor. With the exception of the relatively new and expensive CDT TEST (Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin) and some changes in established questionnaires (shortenings) we have used the same screening tests for decades. The relationship between the patient and the physician, a detailed medical history and experience of the physician cannot be replaced by tests. The Plinius Major Society recommends in its Guidelines the CAGE questionnaire. In medical settings and in primary care the MALT or AUDIT are more informative. As laboratory markers the Plinius Major Society still recommends: gamma-GT, MCV, GOT/GPT (ASAT/ALAT) and CDT. These tests are only useful if normal values of the particular laboratory are given.
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PMID:[Markers for excessive alcohol use (screening)]. 1080 74

Moderate alcohol consumption is associated with increased insulin sensitivity and a reduced risk for type 2 diabetes. An important endogenous mediator of insulin sensitivity is adiponectin (AN), an adipokine that displays numerous antiatherogenic, antidiabetogenic and antiinflammatory effects. Recently, acute increase in alcohol consumption has been shown to be associated with increase in plasma adiponectin and, concomitantly, insulin sensitivity. Whether chronic alcohol consumption predicts an increase in plasma AN and whether this is independent of adiposity, markers of liver dysfunction, and plasma adipokines such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha is not known. We, therefore, investigated these relationships in 75 men who were diagnosed with liver steatosis using ultrasound/liver biopsy. We examined 75 men, who were diagnosed for having liver steatosis (ultrasound/liver biopsy). Each filled in a questionnaire on alcohol intake. Subjects were divided into two subgroups according to alcohol history and CDT concentrations--drinkers and non-drinkers. All individuals were examined for serum concentrations of AN, glucose, triglycerides, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and glutamate transferase (GMT) activity; carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT%) a marker of chronic alcohol consumption, insulin and TNF-alpha. The Quicki insulin sensitivity index was calculated. Forty-eight individuals were found to be moderate drinkers and 27 subjects non-drinkers. Moderate drinkers had significantly higher concentrations of AN (13.8 +/- 3,7 versus 9.1 +/- 5.4 mg/l, means +/- SD, p = 0.012) compared with non-drinkers, independent of adiposity. Plasma AN concentrations in the whole group were positively correlated with TNF-alpha concentrations (r = 0.6; p = 0.0001), CDT (r = 0.26; p = 0.0084), AST/ALT index (r = 0.3, p = 0.009), AST (r = 0.29; p = 0.011) and GMT (r = 0.29; p = 0.011) and negatively with BMI (r = -0.48; p = 0.0002) and glycemia (r = -0.22; p = 0.049). The positive associations of AN with TNF-alpha (0.8; p = 0.001), CDT (0.55; p = 0.017), AST/ALT index (0.55; p = 0.019) and the negative correlation with glycemia (-0.35; p = 0.0158) were independent of BMI. Stratified according to alcohol intake, in moderate drinkers, a positive correlation was found between AN and TNF-alpha concentrations (r = 0.6, p = 0.0001, AST/ALT index (r = 0.34, p = 0.0295) whereas in non-drinkers no such correlations were found. The concentration of AN and BMI displayed a negative correlation in both drinker and nondrinker patients (r = -0.42, p = 0.01 and -0.61; p = 0.012, respectively). We concluded that plasma AN is higher in moderate drinkers compared to non-drinkers, even after correction for BMI. Drinkers suffering from liver steatosis were found to have a positive correlation between AN concentrations, laboratory markers of liver disease and TNF-alpha. Such correlation was absent in non-drinkers suffering from liver steatosis. This suggests that alcohol may modulate the inhibitory effect of TNF-alpha on AN production, and thus, increase its plasma concentrations.
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PMID:High adiponectin and TNF-alpha levels in moderate drinkers suffering from liver steatosis: comparison with non drinkers suffering from similar hepatopathy. 1617 Mar 95

A not moderate alcohol consumption or its abuse have relevant consequences not only on the health of the general population but also on the possibility to carry out any work in safety conditions. These behaviours have focused the attention of the institutions, which have promoted in the last years a growing number of preventive and informative actions and have adopted specific laws that have significantly involved the figure of occupational physician. Over the clinical implications, in fact, those behaviours, in the employment context, are associated with an increased risk of injuries (from 10 to 30% of total), an increase in the number of absences from work, with greater precariousness, with the possible interaction and/or strengthening of other occupational toxics and with the progressive reduction of working capacity. Diagnostic tools available for the detection of alcohol abuse or dependency consist, in acute cases by direct measuring of alcohol on blood, saliva and exhaled air, while in the chronic situations in addiction to the more traditional indicators (AST, ALT, GGT, MCV) there are recently introduced marker (CDT)--or in validation (ethyl glucuronide)--that representing, also with specific questionnaires (AUDIT, MAST, MALT, CAGE), useful integrated tools in the clinical-diagnostic path. The role and contribution of occupational medicine in the management of alcohol related problems is vital and relevant. Must be clear however that these are problems associated with a particular behaviour of the person and not with risks present on work-site.
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PMID:[Acute and chronic alcohol abuse and work]. 1928 91

The analysis of ethyl glucuronide (EtG) in hair is a powerful tool for chronic alcohol abuse control because of the typical wide detection window of the hair matrix and due to the possibility of segmentation, allowing evaluation of alcohol consumption in different periods. Additionally, EtG in hair is often the only diagnostic parameter of choice for alcohol abuse when other clinical parameters such as ALT, AST, gammaGT and CDT (asialotransferrin and disialotransferrin) are in the normal range and EtG in urine negative. In this paper, we describe the development, optimization and validation of a new method based on hair extraction with water, clean-up by solid phase extraction (SPE), derivatization with heptafluorobutyric anhydride and headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) in combination with GC-MS/MS according to forensic guidelines. The assay linearity of EtG was confirmed over the range from 2.8 to 1000 pg/mg hair, with a coefficient of determination (r(2)) above 0.999. The LLOQ was 2.8 pg/mg and the LLOD was 0.6 pg/mg. An error profile calculated according to the "Guide to the Expression of Uncertainty in Measurement" (GUM) at 99% confidence intervals for the range 5-750 pg/mg hair did not exceed 10%. This range corresponds to more than 98% of the positive samples analysed.
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PMID:Validation of a headspace solid-phase microextraction-GC-MS/MS for the determination of ethyl glucuronide in hair according to forensic guidelines. 2006 Nov

Alcohol abuse represents a highly relevant medical, social, and economic problem all over the world. The diagnosis of conditions of alcohol use or abuse is complex, requiring different and integrated methodologies; among them the use of biomarkers is a very helpful and objective tool. This review article discusses the currently available biomarkers of alcohol abuse, showing their positive and negative characteristics in terms of detection window, diagnostic sensitivity, diagnostic specificity, and analytical feasibility. Particular attention is dedicated to the most used biomarkers, represented by liver enzymes (AST, ALT, and GGT), MCV, CDT, EtG and EtS, FAEE, and PEth. A critical analysis of the different biomarkers showed wide variability in terms of detection window, sensitivity, and specificity. On this basis, the choice of any indicator should depend on the aim and context for which the diagnosis of alcohol abuse is required (e.g., clinical, fitness for driver's license, fitness to work, child custody). Moreover, this study showed that the diagnosis of alcohol abuse cannot be based only on the use of biomarkers, but it must also consider the integration of anamnestic, clinical, instrumental, and laboratory data.
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PMID:Biomarkers for the Identification of Alcohol Use/Abuse: A Critical Review. 2623 Dec 35