On the role of monoamine oxidase-A for the maintenance of the volitional consumption of ethanol in two different rat models.

It is hypothesized that although the overall metabolism of ethanol in the brain is very limited, a very small percentage of the brain tissue may carry out that little amount of metabolism. Specifically, hydrogen peroxide may be used as a co-substrate for the metabolism of ethanol to acetaldehyde by catalase and the action of monoamine oxidase in the monoaminergic neurons would supply the hydrogen peroxide. This production of acetaldehyde may result in the formation of novel metabolites that provide the rewarding stimulus for the consumption of ethanol.