The study of the relationships between alcohol consumption and central neurotransmission is difficult: they are different from one individual to another, from one neurotransmission system to another and from one cerebral area to another. Moreover, there is no fully satisfactory animal model of alcoholism and the human studies have to cope with a lot of methodological problems. In spite of these difficulties a bidirectional relationship between alcohol and central neurotransmission is well established. Neuronal dysfunctions are the neurobiological basis for the alcohol behaviour, and ethanol craving seems specifically related to hypofunction of the noradrenergic, GABAergic and serotoninergic systems, and maintained by a positive reinforcement mediated by the dopaminergic and opioid systems. Ethanol alters almost all membrane functions, but it behaves essentially like a barbiturate-type GABAergic agonist. In the short-term, it also stimulates central monoaminergic neurotransmissions. With chronic intoxication, membrane tolerance develops, which is the substratum for tolerance and dependence. Concurrently there are adaptative processes and a depletion of the capacities for synthesis of neurotransmitters, therefore a hypofunctioning of all neurotransmission systems. This hypofunctioning is an additive mechanism for tolerance and dependence, pushing the individual into drinking always more alcohol to palliate it; it is sharply revealed during withdrawal, particularly the GABAergic deficiency.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0197-0186(88)90001-0 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
A comprehensive review of the neurological effects of anethole.
IBRO Neurosci Rep
June 2025
Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Shahrekord University, Shahrekord, Iran.
Since ancient times many countries have employed medicinal plants as part of traditional medicine. Anethole is a substance found in various plants and has two isomers, cis-anethole (CA) and trans-anethole (TA). Currently, the food industry extensively use anethole as an aromatic and flavoring component.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMethionine Sulfoximine as a Tool for Studying Temporal Lobe Epilepsy: Initiator, Developer, Attenuator.
Neurochem Res
January 2025
Department of Pathophysiology, Medical University of Lublin, 20-090, Lublin, Poland.
Methionine sulfoximine (MSO) is a compound originally discovered as a byproduct of agene-based milled flour maturation. MSO irreversibly inhibits the astrocytic enzyme glutamine synthase (GS) but also interferes with the transport of glutamine (Gln) and of glutamate (Glu), and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) synthesized within the Glu/Gln-GABA cycle, in this way dysregulating neurotransmission balance in favor of excitation. No wonder that intraperitoneal administration of MSO has long been known to induce behavioral and/or electrographic seizures.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSynaptic-mitochondrial transport: mechanisms in neural adaptation and degeneration.
Mol Cell Biochem
January 2025
State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Daping Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China.
Synaptic plasticity is the basis for the proper functioning of the central nervous system. Synapses are the contact points between neurons and are crucial for information transmission, the structure and function of synapses change adaptively based on the different activities of neurons, thus affecting processes such as learning, memory, and neural development and repair. Synaptic activity requires a large amount of energy provided by mitochondria.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAMPA Receptors in Synaptic Plasticity, Memory Function, and Brain Diseases.
Cell Mol Neurobiol
January 2025
Laboratory of Neurobiology, Centro de Investigaciones Medico Sanitarias (CIMES), University of Malaga, Calle Marqués de Beccaria, 3, Campus Teatinos s/n, 29010, Malaga, Spain.
Tetrameric AMPA-type ionotropic glutamate receptors are primary transducers of fast excitatory synaptic transmission in the central nervous system, and their properties and abundance at the synaptic surface are crucial determinants of synaptic efficacy in neuronal communication across the brain. The induction of long-term potentiation (LTP) leads to the insertion of GluA1-containing AMPA receptors at the synaptic surface, whereas during long-term depression (LTD), these receptors are internalized into the cytoplasm of the spine. Disruptions in the trafficking of AMPA receptors to and from the synaptic surface attenuate both forms of synaptic plasticity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFImpacts of hnRNP A1 Splicing Inhibition on the Brain Remyelination Proteome.
J Neurochem
January 2025
Laboratory of Neuroproteomics, Department of Biochemistry and Tissue Biology, Institute of Biology, University of Campinas, Campinas, Brazil.
Oligodendrocytes, the myelinating cells in the central nervous system, are implicated in several neurological disorders marked by dysfunctional RNA-binding proteins (RBPs). The present study aimed at investigating the role of hnRNP A1 in the proteome of the corpus callosum, prefrontal cortex, and hippocampus of a murine cuprizone-induced demyelination model. Right after the cuprizone insult, we administered an hnRNP A1 splicing activity inhibitor and analyzed its impact on brain remyelination by nanoESI-LC-MS/MS label-free proteomic analysis to assess the biological processes affected in these brain regions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!