What happens as the vodka cranberry finds its way into the veins and enters the control core of your brain? According to experts, alcohol gets into the head and triggers drunken behavior by breaking down chemicals created in the brain.
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For decades, the possibility of brain alcohol absorption has been a contentious subject in the area of alcohol science, but it has never been shown.
Although the behavioral consequences of alcohol are well-known, the research adds to our understanding of why people can get tipsy after just one or two drinks.
Alcohol's Behavioral Effects
Dr. Li Zhang of National Institutes of Health's Laboratory for Integrative Neuroscience, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism told Daily Mail that alcohol suppresses human brain activity and affects behavior.
Dr. Zhang said drinking alcohol fuels the metabolite and GABA, a neurotransmitter that calms nerves and induces sleepiness.
When various brain areas are unable to coordinate action, voice, and brain activity as efficiently, thought, speech, and gestures slow down.
This is why, when we're intoxicated, we slur our sentences, miss social cues, can't make choices, and become sluggish.
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How The Enzyme Breaks Down In The Brain
New information about the function and delivery of the alcoholic chemical acetate produced by the enzyme ALDH2 could help researchers better understand how alcohol is metabolized in the brain and whether the site of metabolism influences the drug's behavioral effects.
Dr. Zhang's previous study, titled "Targeting Liver Aldehyde Dehydrogenase-2 Prevents Heavy but Not Moderate Alcohol Drinking," explained that ALDH2 was linked to binge drinking.
But in the new study, the researchers looked at mice designed to have no ALDH2 in their astrocytes (though they still had some in their livers).
Since ALDH2 was not converting alcohol to acetate, which is stored in the brain, these mice were shown to be more immune to the effects of alcohol intake. Since drinking alcohol, mice lacking astrocytic ALDH2 had lower levels of acetate GABA in their brains.
As the brain separates ALDH2 from astrocytes, Dr. Zhang explained there was a significant change in activity while being under the influence of alcohol.
The investigator explained that eliminating ALDH2 from the liver had little effect on acetate or GABA levels in the brain.
'These findings suggest acetate produced in the brain and in the liver differ in their ability to affect motor function,' he said.
How The Results Help Treat Alcoholics
The researchers suggest that the ALDH2 enzyme has various effects in the liver and brain. They indicate that the enzyme be investigated further in humans. They also propose that astrocytic ALDH2 may be a promising target for treating alcoholism and potentially other diseases.
The research, published in Nature Metabolism, paves the way for greater control of alcohol's influence on behavior.
It can lead to better treatments for alcoholics and binge drinkers and other diseases that impair equilibrium and coordination, such as stroke, Parkinson's disease, and multiple sclerosis.
Astrocytic ALDH2, Zhang said, is an effective target not only for substance use disorders but also for other neurological diseases.
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