Alcohol Effects on Albumin Synthesis

Abstract

Alcoholism and alcohol-induced organ damage are two separate entities — the former, representing an abnormal syndrome, may show organ involvement early or late, while the latter may occur without true addiction. Either the effects of alcohol or its metabolite acetaldehyde or the resultant effects of complete alcohol metabolism on protein synthesis are probably organ specific, modified by genetic predisposition, altered by nutritional status, hormone inbalance, absorptive capabilities, and the presence or absence of prior alcohol-induced or associated organ damage. To try to isolate the acute and the chronic effects of ethanol exposure on a specific protein synthetic pathway in vivo is not a simple task. The picture is further complicated by the complex nature of the normal protein synthetic and cellular transport systems. It is only necessary to consider how many potential sites in the assembly line process of protein synthesis may be altered by alcohol to see how complex a scheme we are facing (Mueckler and Pitot 1981, 1982; Bantle et al. 1980a; Krieg et al. 1980; Prehn et al. 1981; Thomas et al. 1981; Emr et al. 1980; Walter and Blobel 1981; Rothman 1981; Dorling et al. 1975; Algranati and Sabatini 1979; Schreir et al. 1977; Blobel and Dobberstein 1975; Weigand et al. 1982; Peters et al. 1971; Redman and Cherian 1972; Glauman and Ericsson 1970). Following the final posttranscriptional modification, the appropriate messenger RNA (mRNA) becomes available for the translation process. In its most simplified form this process requires the presence of initiation factors which promote the formation of the ribosomal complex, a complex of the two ribosome subunits and the particular mRNA.

This work was supported by the Medical Research Service of the Veterans Administration, by grant number AA000959 awarded by the Alcohol Drug Abuse Mental Health Administration, and by the Louise and Bernard Palitz Fund