Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UNIPROT:P06889 (Mol)
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This study was conducted to determine if elevated blood alcohol prior to acute coronary artery occlusion affects myocardial infarct size in an in vivo canine model. Seven pentobarbital anesthetized open-chest dogs received 10 min iv infusion of ethanol (0.08 g/kg/min). Ten min after ethanol, the left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD) was occluded distal to its first major branch for 60 min. The LAD was then reperfused for 5 h. Following electrically induced ventricular fibrillation, the area at risk of infarction was delineated with dye. The area of infarction was identified by staining with triphenyl tetrazolium chloride. Eleven untreated control experiments were also conducted. Mean blood ethanol concentration was 155+/-26 mg/dl just prior to LAD occlusion and 47+/-3 mg/dl after 4 h reperfusion. Ethanol infusion had no effect on systemic hemodynamic variables during ischemia. In ethanol treated animals, the area at risk was 19.7+/-3.0% of the left ventricle, and the infarct size was 20.9 +/-4.8% of the area at risk. In control experiments, the area at risk was 23.0+/-4.1% of the left ventricle (p > 0.05), and the infarct size was 21.6+/-3.8% of the area at risk (p > 0.05). Collateral blood flow to ischemic region did not differ between the two groups, and the relationships between infarct size and collateral flow were similar for control and untreated hearts. Acute ethanol exposure prior to coronary artery occlusion and subsequent reperfusion does not affect myocardial infarct size in the heart of the anesthetized dog.
Mol Cell Biochem 1998 Sep
PMID:Effect of ethanol on myocardial infarct size in a canine model of coronary artery occlusion-reperfusion. 977 83

Iron can potentiate the toxicity of ethanol. Ethanol increases the content of cytochrome P450 2E1 (CYP2E1), which generates reactive oxygen species, and transition metals such as iron are powerful catalysts of hydroxyl radical formation and lipid peroxidation. Experiments were carried out to attempt to link CYP2E1, iron, and oxidative stress as a potential mechanism by which iron increases ethanol toxicity. The addition of ferric-nitrilotriacetate (Fe-NTA) to a HepG2 cell line expressing CYP2E1 decreased cell viability, whereas little effect was observed in control cells not expressing CYP2E1. Toxicity in the CYP2E1-expressing cells was markedly enhanced after the depletion of glutathione. Lipid peroxidation was increased by Fe-NTA, especially in cell extracts and medium from the CYP2E1-expressing cells. Toxicity was completely prevented by vitamin E or by 6-hydroxy-2,5,7,8-tetramethylchroman-2-carboxylic acid, which also decreased the lipid peroxidation. Levels of ATP were lowered by Fe-NTA, and this was associated with a decreased rate of oxygen consumption by permeabilized cells with substrates donating electrons to complexes I, II, and IV of the respiratory chain. This mitochondrial damage was prevented by vitamin E. Toxicity was accompanied by DNA fragmentation, and this fragmentation was prevented by antioxidants. Overexpression of bcl-2 decreased the toxicity and DNA fragmentation produced by the combination of CYP2E1 plus Fe-NTA, as did a peptide inhibitor of caspase 3. These results suggest that elevated generation of reactive oxygen species in HepG2 cells expressing CYP2E1 leads to lipid peroxidation in the presence of iron, and the ensuing prooxidative state damages mitochondria, releasing factors that activate caspase 3, leading to a loss in cell viability and DNA fragmentation.
Mol Pharmacol 1998 Dec
PMID:Oxidative stress and cytotoxicity induced by ferric-nitrilotriacetate in HepG2 cells that express cytochrome P450 2E1. 985 31

Ethanol, at physiologically relevant concentrations, significantly enhanced high-affinity neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (NnAChR) currents insensitive to alpha-bungarotoxin (alpha-BuTX-ICs) in cultured rat cortical neurons in a fast and reversible manner, as determined by standard whole-cell patch-clamp recording techniques. The enhancement was (mean +/- S.D.) 7.7 +/- 5% to 192 +/- 52% upon coapplication of 3 to 300 mM ethanol with 1 to 3 microM ACh. No plateau for this ethanol-induced enhancement of alpha-BuTX-ICs was reached. The maximal alpha-BuTX-IC evoked by very high concentrations of ACh also was increased upon coapplication of ethanol. In contrast, ethanol weakly inhibited low-affinity NnAChR currents sensitive to alpha-BuTX (alpha-BuTX-SCs) (5 +/- 4% to 29 +/- 6% inhibition by 10 to 300 mM ethanol at 300 to 1000 microM ACh). This neuronal preparation also enabled comparison of ethanol action on NnAChRs with its action on N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor currents and gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor currents within the same neurons. Ethanol (100 mM) was more potent at enhancing NnAChR alpha-BuTX-ICs (61 +/- 9% enhancement) than it was at enhancing gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor current (3 +/- 3% enhancement-not statistically significant) or at inhibiting N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor currents (approximately 35 +/- 7% inhibition). Thus, NnAChRs, particularly those insensitive to alpha-BuTX, may be sensitive conduits through which ethanol can mediate some of its actions in the brain.
Mol Pharmacol 1999 Jan
PMID:Ethanol modulation of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor currents in cultured cortical neurons. 988 96

Ethanol enhances the gating of a family of related ligand-gated ion channels including nicotinic acetylcholine, serotonin type 3, gamma-aminobutyric acid-A, and glycine receptors. This common action may reflect shared molecular and kinetic mechanisms. In all of these receptors, ethanol enhances multichannel currents elicited with low agonist concentrations, but not with high agonist concentrations. A single mutation in the nicotinic receptor beta subunit, betaT263I, causes ethanol to enhance multichannel currents elicited with both low and high acetylcholine concentrations. Based on the ratios of acetylcholine EC50s in the presence and absence of ethanol, this mutant's sensitivity to enhancement is similar to wild type. Ethanol enhancement of betaT263I receptor activation shows no voltage dependence. In the presence of ethanol, the apparent single-channel conductance of the betaT263I receptor is reduced and the apparent channel lifetime is lengthened. Both the 28% increase in maximal current and the 2-fold reduction in EC50 observed at 300 mM ethanol are quantitatively predicted by simulation of a simple kinetic scheme in which ethanol increases by 4-fold the ratio of microscopic opening rate (beta) to closing rate (alpha) for acetylcholine-bound betaT263I receptors. We conclude that ethanol enhancement of betaT263I currents reflects stabilization of its open-channel state relative to agonist-bound closed states. Ethanol effects in wild-type receptors can also be explained by this mechanism.
Mol Pharmacol 1999 Jan
PMID:Novel modulation of a nicotinic receptor channel mutant reveals that the open state is stabilized by ethanol. 988 3

Chronic alcohol abuse is often associated with reproductive disorders. Sperm monosaccharides play an indispensable role in sperm-egg interactions and fertilization. Ethanol (3 g/kg body weight as 25%, v/v) was given by gastric intubation twice daily for 30 days while in another group, rats which had been treated with ethanol were withdrawn from treatment for a further period of 30 days, in order to assess the reversibility of the ethanol-induced effects. Epididymal ethanol content, sperm monosaccharides and the fertility of ethanol treated and ethanol withdrawn rats were assessed. Ethanol ingestion caused a significant decrease in sperm monosaccharides suggesting defective glycosylation of sperm surface proteins. Sperm monosaccharides and fertility were returned to normal following the withdrawal of ethanol. Ethanol-induced changes in sperm monosaccharides may be one of the reasons for the reduced fertility of ethanol treated rats.
Biochem Mol Biol Int 1999 Jan
PMID:Effects of ethanol ingestion on sperm monosaccharides and fertility. 1009 46

Ethanol increases free radical formation; however, it was recently demonstrated that it also causes extensive hypoxia in rat liver in vivo. To address this issue, it was hypothesized that peroxynitrite formed in normoxic periportal regions of the liver lobule has its reactivity enhanced in hypoxic pericentral regions where the pH is lower. Via this pathway, peroxynitrite could lead to free radical formation in the absence of oxygen. Livers from fed rats were perfused at low flow rates for 75 min. Under these conditions, periportal regions were well oxygenated but pericentral areas became hypoxic. Low-flow perfusion caused a significant 6-fold increase in nitrotyrosine accumulation in pericentral regions. During the last 20 min of perfusion, the spin-trap alpha-(4-pyridyl-1-oxide)-N-tert-butylnitrone was infused and adducts were collected for electron-spin resonance analysis. A six-line radical adduct signal was detected in perfusate. Direct infusion of peroxynitrite produced a radical adduct with identical coupling constants, and a similar pattern of nitrotyrosine accumulation was observed. Retrograde perfusion at low rates resulted in accumulation of nitrotyrosine in periportal regions. Although the magnitude of the radical in perfusate was increased by ethanol, it was not derived directly from it. Both nitrotyrosine accumulation and radical formation were reduced by inhibition of nitric oxide synthase with N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester, but not with the inactive D-isomer. Radical formation was decreased nearly completely by superoxide dismutase and N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester, consistent with the hypothesis that the final prooxidant is a derivative from both NO. and superoxide (i.e., peroxynitrite). These results support the hypothesis that oxidative stress occurs in hypoxic regions of the liver lobule by mechanisms involving peroxynitrite.
Mol Pharmacol 1999 Apr
PMID:Oxidative stress occurs in perfused rat liver at low oxygen tension by mechanisms involving peroxynitrite. 1010 Oct 29

Ethanol is a major health concern, with neurotoxicity occurring after both in utero exposure and adult alcohol abuse. Despite a large amount of research, the mechanism(s) underlying the neurotoxicity of ethanol remain unknown. One of the cellular aspects that has been investigated in relationship to the neuroteratogenicity and neurotoxicity of ethanol is the maintenance of calcium homeostasis. Studies in neuronal cells and other cells have shown that ethanol can alter intracellular calcium levels and affect voltage and receptor-operated calcium channels, as well as G protein-mediated calcium responses. Despite increasing evidence of the important roles of glial cells in the nervous systems, few studies exist on the potential effects of ethanol on calcium homeostasis in these cells. This brief review discusses a number of reported effects of alcohol on calcium responses that may be relevant to astrocytes' functions.
Mol Neurobiol 1999 Feb
PMID:Effects of ethanol on calcium homeostasis in the nervous system: implications for astrocytes. 1032 69

Many studies have demonstrated that intoxicating concentrations of ethanol (10-100 mM) can selectively inhibit the component of glutamatergic synaptic transmission mediated by N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors while having little or no effect on excitatory synaptic transmission mediated by non-NMDA receptors [i.e., alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionate (AMPA) and/or kainate (KA) receptors]. However, until the recent development of highly selective AMPA receptor antagonists, it was not possible to assess the relative contribution of AMPA and KA receptors to non-NMDA receptor-mediated synaptic transmission or to determine whether these glutamate receptor subtypes differed in their sensitivity to ethanol. In the present experiments, we used the highly selective AMPA receptor antagonist LY 303070 to pharmacologically isolate KA receptor-mediated excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) in rat hippocampal CA3 pyramidal neurons and tested their sensitivity to ethanol. Concentrations of ethanol as low as 20 mM significantly and reversibly depressed KA EPSCs. Ethanol also inhibited KA currents evoked by direct pressure application of KA in the presence of LY 303070, suggesting that this inhibition was mediated by a postsynaptic action. In contrast, ethanol had no effect on AMPA EPSCs in these cells, even at the highest concentration tested (80 mM). Ethanol significantly inhibited NMDA EPSCs in these neurons, but these responses were less sensitive to ethanol than KA EPSCs. These results suggest that in addition to its well-described depressant effect on NMDA receptor-mediated synaptic transmission, ethanol has an even greater inhibitory effect on glutamatergic synaptic transmission mediated by KA receptors in rat hippocampal CA3 pyramidal neurons.
Mol Pharmacol 1999 Jul
PMID:Ethanol inhibition of synaptically evoked kainate responses in rat hippocampal CA3 pyramidal neurons. 1038 87

Isolation of human term placental membranes in the presence or absence of protease inhibitors indicated that protease inhibitors significantly reduced the amounts of [(125)I]-labelled gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) binding to membrane GnRH-receptors in vitro by approximately 20%. This decrease was largely due to the ethanol used to dissolve the serine protease inhibitor, phenylmethylsulphonylfluoride (PMSF). Ethanol alone decreased the specific binding of [(125)I]-labelled GnRH isoform (IC(50), 7.9 +/- 0.8 mg/ml; n = 6) or agonist tracers (IC(50), 10.0 +/- 1.4 mg/ml; n = 6) to human placental membranes in a dose-dependent manner. Other alcohols also interfered with [(125)I]-GnRH isoform or agonist binding: inhibition increased with increasing carbon chain length and was dependent on the isomeric position of the hydroxyl group. Fractionation of term placental cytosol by gel chromatography demonstrated the presence of a high molecular weight fraction ( approximately 60-70 kDa) which inhibited [(125)I]-GnRH binding to human placental membranes. However, placental cytosol fractions did not cross-react significantly with a specific anti-GnRH antibody. Surprisingly, re-assay of cytosol fractions in the presence of a cocktail of protease inhibitors generated a factor (molecular weight approximately 40-50 kDa) which did cross-react strongly with the GnRH antibody. The generation of this factor was due to the ethanol solvent rather than to the protease inhibitors per se, as treatment of pooled 'latent' cytosol fractions with ethanol alone generated GnRH-like immunoactivity (irGnRH) which competed in parallel with GnRH standard. The amount of irGnRH generated depended on the concentration of ethanol added to the 'latent' cytosol fractions. However, ethanol had no effect on the assay in the absence of cytosol fraction, or with inactive cytosol fractions. Thus, ethanol can perturb the human placental GnRH/GnRH-receptor system in vitro in two distinct ways: by inhibition of GnRH binding to receptor, and by dissociation of complexed endogenous GnRH-like factor(s) from a GnRH-binding protein. It is postulated that high alcohol consumption in vivo may interfere with placental GnRH secretion/action and affect placental secretion of factors important to the establishment and maintenance of pregnancy.
Mol Hum Reprod 1999 Aug
PMID:Effects of alcohol on the human placental GnRH receptor system. 1042 7

Ethanol and polyunsaturated fatty acids such as arachidonic acid were shown to be toxic and cause apoptosis in HepG2 cells which express CYP2E1 but not in control HepG2 cell lines. The goal of the current study was to extend the observations made with the HepG2 cells to non-transformed, intact hepatocytes. Rats were treated with pyrazole to increase CYP2E1 levels, hepatocytes were isolated and placed into culture and treated for varying time points with ethanol or arachidonic acid. Comparisons were made to hepatocytes from saline-treated rats, with low CYP2E1 content. Incubation with ethanol (100 mM) or especially arachidonic acid (60 microM) resulted in loss of viability of hepatocytes from the pyrazole-treated rats, without any effect on the hepatocytes from the saline-treated rats. The toxicity appeared to be apoptotic in nature and was prevented by diallyldisulfide, an inhibitor of CYP2E1. Toxicity was reduced by trolox, an antioxidant. The treatment with ethanol or arachidonic acid resulted in release of cytochrome c into the cytosol fraction, and activation of caspase 3 (but not caspase 1) in hepatocytes from the pyrazole-treated rats but not hepatocytes from the saline-treated rats. The activation of caspase 3 was prevented by diallyldisulfide, by trolox, and by DEVD-fmk. The latter also prevented the toxicity produced by ethanol or arachidonic acid. These results extend previous observations found with HepG2 cells expressing CYP2E1 to intact hepatocytes and suggest that release of cytochrome c and activation of caspase 3 play a role in the overall pathway by which CYP2E1 contributes towards the hepatotoxic actions of ethanol and polyunsaturated fatty acids.
Mol Cell Biochem 2000 Jan
PMID:Ethanol and arachidonic acid produce toxicity in hepatocytes from pyrazole-treated rats with high levels of CYP2E1. 1071 35


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