Study advocates equal alcohol taxes

Mark Metherell
August 1, 2008

CASK wine, a drop often favoured by heavy drinkers, would jump in price and the price of alcopops would fall under a tax scheme being recommended to reduce problem drinking.

In findings that undermine the Government's 70 per cent increase in tax on alcopops, research has shown that taxing drinks according to their alcohol volume would be the most cost-effective approach to combat alcohol harm.

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Bingeing boomers put youth in shade

July 30, 2008

WHILE Australia's policy-makers focus on the binge-drinking activities of the nation's youth, it's baby boomers that nudge the bottle harder, a pharmaceutical company survey has found.

The latest GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Health Index has found almost 10 per cent of people aged 55 to 64 had 20 or more standard drinks in a week, compared to eight per cent of those aged 18 to 24.

But the survey found Australians were trying alcohol for the first time at a younger age.

Almost 11 per cent of the 18-to-24-year-olds surveyed said they were aged 12 or younger when they had their first alcoholic drink, while 42 per cent were between 12 and 15.

But only five per cent of 55- to 64-year-olds were aged 12 or younger and 17 per cent were aged between 12 and 15 at the time of their first tipple.
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Impact of Alcohol Abuse on Protein Expression of Midkine and Excitatory Amino Acid Transporter 1 in the Human Prefrontal Cortex
Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Published Online: 24 Jul 2008

Alcoholism is associated with shrinkage of brain tissue and reduction in the number of neurons and dendritic arbors particularly in the prefrontal cortex. These changes correlate with the cognitive defects common in alcoholics. A recent study investigated the mRNA expression of selected genes in the prefrontal cortex and found that the levels of mRNA encoding the neurotrophic factor, midkine (MDK), and the excitatory amino acid transporter 1 (EAAT1) were significantly higher in alcoholics compared with nonalcoholic controls.

This study aimed to investigate, whether the transcriptional changes observed result in alterations to protein expression. Additionally, the study aimed to expand our understanding of MDK and EAAT1 action by localizing their expression within morphologically and functionally distinct layers of this brain region.

Midkine promotes neuronal outgrowth and survival. The up-regulation of MDK protein expression may indicate the induction of reparative processes. The amino acid transporter is vital for the removal of glutamate from the synaptic cleft. At alcohol withdrawal, extracellular glutamate is thought to reach excitotoxic concentrations. Up-regulation of EAAT1 throughout the cortical layers may indicate an attempt to combat elevated glutamate concentrations.

The predominant expression of the two proteins in layer II of the cortex implies a region-specific role of astrocytes.

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Brain Diffusion Abnormalities in Children With Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder
Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Published Online: 30 Jul 2008


Children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) have a variety of cognitive, behavioral, and neurological impairments, including structural brain damage. Despite the importance of white matter connections for proper brain function, little is known about how these connections, and the deep gray matter structures that act as relay stations, are affected in children with FASD.

The purpose of this study was to use diffusion tensor imaging, an advanced magnetic resonance imaging technique, to examine microstructural differences of white and deep gray matter in children with FASD.

Diffusion tensor imaging revealed significant differences of diffusion parameters in several areas of the brain, including the genu and splenium of the corpus callosum, cingulum, corticospinal tracts, inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus, inferior and superior longitudinal fasciculi, globus pallidus, putamen, and thalamus. Reduced white and gray matter volumes, as well as total brain volume, were observed in the FASD group.

These results demonstrate diffusion abnormalities in FASD beyond the corpus callosum and suggest that several specific white matter regions, particularly commissural and temporal connections, and deep gray matter areas of the brain are sensitive to prenatal alcohol exposure.

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Rerquest Reprint E-Mail: christian.beaulieu@ualberta.ca

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Spiritual direction in addiction treatment: Two clinical trials
Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, Article in Press 26 July 2008


Spirituality has long been regarded as an important component of recovery from addiction.

This article reports the findings of two controlled trials of spiritual direction as an adjunct in addiction treatment. In Study 1, 60 participants were randomly assigned to receive or not receive a 12-session manual-guided spiritual guidance (SG) intervention during and after inpatient treatment, in addition to treatment as usual (TAU). In Study 2, two cohorts of 40 each received TAU without or with SG during their inpatient stay.

In both trials, contrary to prediction, SG had no effect on spiritual practices or substance use outcomes at any follow-up point. At the first follow-up in Study 1 only, those randomly assigned to spiritual direction unexpectedly showed significantly less improvement on depression and anxiety, relative to TAU controls.

Limitations and implications for treatment are discussed.

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Alcohol and Other Drug Dependence Severity Among Older Adults in Treatment: Measuring Characteristics and Outcomes
Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly: Volume: 26 Issue: 3 , pp. 241 - 258

The number of older adults is increasing, yet little is known about their responses to treatment for substance dependence. While age-appropriate measures have been developed for depression and alcohol screening among older adults, severity and outcome measurement for this population has not been addressed.

The purpose of the present study was (1) to add to the limited but growing literature on the older adult's response to treatment, and (2) examine the utility of a well-known measure of severity, the Addiction Severity Index (ASI; McLellan et al., 1992), in measuring baseline acuity and one-year outcomes among older adults in treatment for alcohol and drug dependence.

Participants (N= 67) completed the ASI and other measures at baseline and at 6 and 12 months post-treatment.

ASI alcohol, drug, family/social, and psychiatric composite scores improved significantly over time. Medical, employment, and legal scores did not change. Continuous abstinence was maintained by 71% at 6 months and 60% at 12 months after discharge.

The ASI captured changes in participant functioning over time, indicating it is a useful tool in measuring severity and outcomes among older adults.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: vslaymaker@hazelden.org

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Glatt's Curve Revisited: A Pilot Study Investigating the Progression of Recovery in Alcoholics Anonymous
Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly: Volume: 26 Issue: 3, pp. 241 - 258

Glatt's 1958 curve is used in AA to illustrate the nature of alcohol dependence and recovery, and spiritual gains are considered an important point in the recovery progression.

Sixteen AA members, who had experienced transformational changes, were interviewed regarding the progression of recovery surrounding their transformation. Their progressions were compared with Glatt's hypothetical curve. For most, the transformation was located in the middle of the recovery progression and was positively correlated with Glatt's progression.

For this sample, the working of the 4th step of AA appeared to be an important catalyst for transformational change. In addition, the experience of transformation often resulted in a rebirth of ideals and a new set of enduring moral values.

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Drinking blamed on rise in violence by women

The Daily Mail has linked women's drinking to a rise in violent crime by women. In an article entitled, Menace of the violent girls: Binge-drinking culture fuels surge in attacks by women the paper says "the number of violent attacks by women has doubled in just five years in the age of the 'ladette' binge-drinking culture. Last year 87,200 women and girls were arrested for attacks – the equivalent of 240 every day. It is the first time in history that violence has been the most common crime among women and girls, taking over from theft.

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Public health programme for alcohol misuse found lacking by Healthcare Commission and Audit Commission

Two independent watchdogs have called for a renewed drive to improve public health services after analysing the success of policies over the past decade. A new report by the Healthcare Commission and Audit Commission assesses the impact government policy has had on: narrowing health inequalities; improving sexual and mental health; and reducing smoking, alcohol misuse and obesity.

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Ethanol neurotoxicity and dentate gyrus development
Congenital Anomalies Volume 48 Issue 3, Pages 110 - 117


Maternal alcohol ingestion during pregnancy adversely affects the developing fetus, often leading to fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS).

One of the most severe consequences of FAS is brain damage that is manifested as cognitive, learning, and behavioral deficits. The hippocampus plays a crucial role in such abilities; it is also known as one of the brain regions most vulnerable to ethanol-induced neurotoxicity.

Our recent studies using morphometric techniques have further shown that ethanol neurotoxicity appears to affect the development of the dentate gyrus in a region-specific manner; it was found that early postnatal ethanol exposure causes a transitory deficit in the hilus volume of the dentate gyrus.

It is strongly speculated that such structural modifications, even transitory ones, appear to result in developmental abnormalities in the brain circuitry and lead to the learning disabilities observed in FAS children.

Based on reports on possible factors deciding ethanol neurotoxicity to the brain, we review developmental neurotoxicity to the dentate gyrus of the hippocampal formation.

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DRD2 and ANKK1 genotype in alcohol-dependent patients with psychopathic traits: association and interaction study
The British Journal of PsychiatryThe British Journal of Psychiatry (2008) 193: 121-125.

The TaqI-A polymorphism of the ANKK1 gene, adjacent to the DRD2 gene, has been associated with alcoholism and other psychiatric conditions, although other DRD2 gene variants, such as the C957T polymorphism, could be related to these phenotypic traits.

To investigate the contribution of the TaqI-A and the C957T polymorphisms to the presence of psychopathic traits in patients with alcoholism.

There was a significant association of the TaqI-A and C957T polymorphisms when both genotypes were present, with PCL–R scores of F_1-171=0.13 (P=0.01) and a frequency of dissocial personal disorder OR=10.52, P<0.001.

The TaqI-A of the ANKK1 gene and the C957T of the DRD2 gene are epistatically associated with psychopathic traits in alcohol-dependent patients.

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The DASIS Report: Frequency of Use among Alcohol-Only Treatment Admissions: 2006

Highlights:

• Based on substance abuse treatment admissions in 2006 reported to SAMHSA's Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS), 49% of the alcohol-only treatment admissions reporting daily use were referred to substance abuse treatment by themselves, a family member or a friend.

• Over half (55%) of alcohol-only treatment admissions reporting less than daily use were referred to treatment by the criminal justice system.

• Alcohol-only treatment admissions in 2006 reporting daily use were more likely than those reporting less frequent use to be "not in the labor force" (41% vs. 24%) and less likely to be employed full-time (20% vs. 41%).

• Among alcohol-only treatment admissions, those reporting daily alcohol use were more likely than those reporting less frequent use to be homeless (26% vs. 9%).

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Neuroplasticity in brain reward circuitry following a history of ethanol dependence

Eur J Neurosci. 2008 April; 27(8): 1912–1922.


Mitogen-activated and extracellular regulated kinase (MEK) and extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase (ERK) pathways may underlie ethanol-induced neuroplasticity.

Here, we used the MEK inhibitor UO126 to probe the role of MEK/ERK signaling for the cellular response to an acute ethanol challenge in rats with or without a history of ethanol dependence.

Ethanol (1.5g/kg, i.p.) induced expression of the marker genes c-fos and egr-1 in brain regions associated both with rewarding and stressful ethanol actions.

Under non-dependent conditions, alcohol-induced c-fos expression was generally not affected by MEK inhibition, with the exception of medial amygdala (MeA). In contrast, following a history of dependence, a markedly suppressed c-fos response to acute ethanol was found in medial prefrontal-/orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), nucleus accumbens shell (AcbSh) and paraventricular nucleus (PVN).

The suppressed ethanol response in the OFC and AcbSh, key regions involved in ethanol preference and seeking, was restored by pre-treatment with UO126, demonstrating a recruitment of an ERK/MEK mediated inhibitory regulation in the post-dependent state. Conversely, in brain areas involved in stress responses (MeA, PVN), a MEK/ERK mediated cellular activation by acute ethanol was lost following a history of dependence.

These data reveal region-specific neuroadaptations encompassing the MEK/ERK pathway in ethanol dependence. Recruitment of MEK/ERK mediated suppression of the ethanol response in OFC and AcbSh may reflect devaluation of ethanol as a reinforcer, while loss of a MEK/ERK mediated response in MeA and PVN may reflect tolerance to its aversive actions. These two neuroadaptations could act in concert to facilitate progression into ethanol dependence.

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Last round in Bots

Article By:

Fri, 01 Aug 2008

Botswana's government will next month raise alcohol prices by 70 percent in a bid to curb alcoholism, the office of the newly elected President Ian Khama said Thursday. "The levy will commence on August 18 and be used for educating the public on the dangers of alcohol abuse, rehabilitation programmes for victims of alcohol abuse and other good causes," said a statement from the president's office.
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Heart risk from two drinks a day

“Just two alcoholic drinks a day is enough to significantly increase the risk of high blood pressure and heart disease,” The Daily Telegraph reported. The newspaper went on to describe a study which found that women who regularly have two alcoholic drinks, and men who have three, run an increased risk of developing metabolic syndrome. People are classified as having this condition if they have multiple risk factors, such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure and problems controlling blood sugar levels in the body. Together they can be an early warning sign of future health problems.

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Tax alcohol by volume: study

July 31, 200

Shifting to volumetric taxation of alcohol - based on how much alcohol a product contains - would be the best way to curb binge drinking, a new study has found.

Bans on advertising would be the second most cost-effective and sustainable measure, followed by raising the legal drinking age to 21, according to the study funded by Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation (AER) Foundation.

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Automated Measurement of Carbohydrate-Deficient Transferrin Using the Bio-Rad %CDT by the HPLC Test on a Variant^TM HPLC System: Evaluation and Comparison with Other Routine Procedures
Alcohol and Alcoholism Advance Access published online on July 30, 2008


In this study, we evaluated the new %CDT by the HPLC method (Bio-Rad, Germany) on a Variant^TM HPLC system (Bio-Rad), checked the correlation with well-known methods and calculated the diagnostic value of the test.

Intra-run and day-to-day precision values were calculated for samples with extreme serum transferrin concentrations, high trisialotransferrin and interfering conditions (haemolysed, lactescent and icteric samples). The method was compared with two routine procedures, the %CDT TIA (Bio-Rad, Hercules, CA, USA) and the Capillarys^TM CDT (Sebia, France). A total of 350 clinical sera samples were used for a case-control study.

Precision values were better in high CDT and medium CDT pools than in low CDT pools. The serum transferrin concentration had no effect on CDT measurement, except in samples with serum transferrin <1> situation. The method showed high correlation (r² > 0.95) with the two other methods (%CDT TIA and CZE %CDT). The global predictive value of the test was >0.90 at 1.9% cut-off.

These results demonstrate that the %CDT by the HPLC test is suitable for CDT routine measurement; the results from the high-throughput Variant^TM system are well correlated with other methods and are of high diagnostic value.

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Media Release - Volumetric taxation highlighted as the most cost-effective intervention to reduce alcohol-related harm


31 July 2008 – New research (1) released today by the Alcohol Education & Rehabilitation (AER) Foundation finds that implementing a volumetric taxation system on alcohol is the most cost-effective and sustainable intervention option to reduce the burden of alcohol-related harm in Australia.

Funded by the AER and led by Associate Professor Christopher Doran from the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre and Associate Professor Theo Vos from the University of Queensland, the Report costs and compares the impact of a range of interventions designed to reduce excess alcohol consumption and the cost burden of associated diseases.
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Just two drinks a day can increase the risk of heart disease, study shows


By Kate Devlin, Medical Correspondent
30 Jul 2008

Just two alcoholic drinks a day is enough significantly increase the risk of high blood pressure and heart disease, a new study shows.

Researchers found that women who had two drinks a day had a higher chance of developing the conditions, which are among the biggest killers in Britain.

Men who had three drinks a day were also at the same increased risk.

Scientists found that those who were drinking small amounts on a regular basis were more likely to be at risk of a serious health condition called metabolic syndrome.

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Katine's alcohol problem: a local perspective


Richard M. Kavuma
Wednesday July 30 2008

We recently reported on Uganda's hidden alcohol problem. Here, Richard M Kavuma talks to Katine villagers about the issue and discovers how alcohol abuse affects the lives of women in particular. Read Sarah Adeka's story

I interviewed four Katine villagers ahead of International Women's Day in March about the challenges they faced as women, I noticed a common thread running through their tales – Katine's men, it seemed, were married more to alcohol than to their wives.

Women, I was told, did a lot of the gardening, finding food, clothing children, providing the family with medical care. What then, I asked, do the men do?

Drink.

This of course, was an extreme reaction, but a telling one. It is normally women who make ajon, the local brew made mainly from millet flour and water. And it is normally women who sell alcohol, mostly to men. But it is also usually women who suffer the consequences of alcohol abuse.

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Deleterious Effect of Cirrhosis on Outcomes After Motor Vehicle Crashes Using the Nationwide Inpatient Sample
Am J Gastroenterol 2008;103:1674–1681

Alcohol abuse and minimal hepatic encephalopathy may predispose cirrhotics to a higher motor vehicle crash (MVC) rate. Cirrhotics have poor post-trauma outcomes on small-scale studies.

The aim was to examine the effect of cirrhosis on mortality, charges, and length of stay (LOS) after MVCs using the Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) 2004.

There were 560,080 discharges for cirrhosis only, 262,244 for MVC only, and 1,565 for C-MVC. C-MVC patients were significantly younger (49.8 yr vs 58.6 yr, P <>vs cirrhosis only 9.9%, P = 0.23). C-MVC patients (49.8 yr) were older than MVC only patients (43.7 yr, P <>P <>65 yr (OR 5.2, 95% CI 4.4–6.0) were most commonly associated with mortality. Male sex, high ISS, self-pay, teaching, and large and urban hospitals were also significantly associated with mortality. On multivariate regression, cirrhosis was associated with greater charges and LOS.

Cirrhosis is associated with greater mortality, LOS, and charges after MVC despite controlling for injury severity, comorbidities, and age in NIS 2004.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: jbajaj@mcw.edu

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Alcohol Consumption by Cirrhotic Subjects: Patterns of Use and Effects on Liver Function
Am J Gastroenterol 2008;103:1698–1706


We investigated patterns of use of alcohol and its clinical effects among cirrhotic subjects who participated in a randomized clinical trial comparing the efficacy of transjugular intravenous portosystemic shunt and distal splenorenal shunt.

Twenty-eight subjects (21%) were drinking at study entry and 60 subjects (45%) drank during follow-up. Heavy drinking (>4 drinks/day) was recorded in 25 ALD subjects, but in no non-ALD subjects (P <>P <>vs 30%), ascites (33% vs 20%), encephalopathy (56% vs 42%), and variceal bleeding (11% vs 3%) were greater in the ALD group. In a Cox proportional hazards model only “ever heavy drinking” was associated with death (P = 0.0099), while recent heavy drinking increased the hazard of variceal hemorrhage dramatically (odds ratio 10.85).

Whereas most cirrhotic subjects, alcoholic or not, did not drink during 5 yr of observation, heavy alcohol use occurred exclusively in ALD patients. Alcohol use by ALD subjects was associated with elevations in GGT and was linked to death and with rebleeding from shunt dysfunction.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: mrl@medicine.wisc.edu

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Alcohol Goes on a Health Kick

By ALEX WILLIAMS

On Monday around 9 p.m., three young Brooklynites stopped into Counter, a vegetarian restaurant in the East Village. Laughing and chatting, they sampled organic raspberries, poached pears, fresh pineapple and strawberries.

That this bounty was found not tableside but at the bar, where the restaurant’s menu of organic cocktails has been steadily expanding, only heightened the appeal.

“It’s the same thing as top-shelf liquor,” said Nick Guffey, 28, a massage therapist with an ink-black shag haircut, referring to drinks like his red-wine-and-poached-pear organic cocktail. “You can drink a ton and not wake up with a hangover.”

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The healthful-cocktail concept received an imprint of credibility in April, when researchers at the United States Department of Agriculture, in conjunction with Thai colleagues, reported that adding alcohol to strawberries and blackberries increased their antioxidant capacity (although alcohol still causes some cell damage, some scientists cautioned).

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Natural volatile treatments increase free-radical scavenging capacity of strawberries and blackberries
Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture

Volume 87 Issue 8, Pages 1463 - 1472

Free-radical scavenging capacities of strawberries and blackberries treated with methyl jasmonate (MJ), allyl isothiocyanate (AITC), essential oil of Melaleuca alternifolia (tea-tree oil or TTO), and ethanol (EtOH) were investigated.

All of these natural volatiles tested reduced the severity of decay in both strawberries and blackberries during storage at 10 °C as compared to the control. Most of these compounds enhanced antioxidant capacity and free-radical scavenging capacity, except the AITC treatment.

The MJ treatment for strawberries and blackberries had the highest antioxidant capacity, expressed as oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) values, after 7 days of storage. Moreover, the MJ treatment promoted the antioxidant capacity in strawberries and blackberries as measured by the radical 2,2-di (4-tert-octylphenyl) -1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and the radical cation 2,2-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS⁺) scavenging activity in both 7 and 14 days after storage. The MJ treatment also increased scavenging capacities on the superoxide radical (O₂^-), hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), hydroxyl radical (OH), and singlet oxygen (¹O₂) in strawberries and blackberries.

Treatment with TTO or EtOH enhanced most of these free-radical scavenging capacities, except for H₂O₂ in strawberries, and for O₂^- and ¹O₂ in blackberries. These results indicated that all of the natural volatile compounds tested in this study, except AITC, promoted the antioxidant capacity and scavenging capacity of most major free radicals and, thus, helped to improve the physiology of berry fruits and enhanced their resistance to decay.

While AITC was also very effective in reducing decay, its effect on free-radical scavenging capacity was inconsistent, suggesting that additional mechanisms may be involved in its inhibition of fungal growth.

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Patterns of Alcohol Consumption and the Metabolic Syndrome
Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism Online July 15, 2008


Protective and detrimental associations have been reported between alcohol consumption and the Metabolic Syndrome. This may be due to variations in drinking patterns and different alcohol effects on the Metabolic Syndrome components.

This study is designed to examine the relationship between alcohol consumption patterns and the Metabolic Syndrome.

In multinomial logistic regression models controlling for demographics, family history of cardiovascular disease and diabetes, and lifestyle factors, increased risk of the Metabolic Syndrome was associated with daily consumption that exceeded U.S. Dietary Guideline recommendations (>1 drink per drinking day for women and >2 drinks per drinking day for men (odds ratio (OR) = 1.60, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.22 2.11)) and binge drinking once /week (OR (95% CI)=1.51 (1.012.29).

By individual metabolic abnormality, drinking in excess of the Dietary Guidelines was associated with an increased risk of impaired fasting glucose/diabetes mellitus, hypertriglyceridemia, abdominal obesity, and HBP.

Public health messages should emphasize the potential cardiometabolic risk associated with drinking in excess of national guidelines and binge drinking.

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Let children drink at home, Cameron urges parents

• Hélène Mulholland and agencies
• guardian.co.uk,
• Wednesday July 30 2008

Parents should introduce their children to alcohol at home in order to avoid it causing trouble when they are older, the Conservative leader, David Cameron, said today.

Speaking to a group of young Radio 1 Newsbeat listeners in Newquay, Cornwall, Cameron said children should be introduced to the idea "that drinking is something you can do socially, and something you can do with a meal, and something that is part of life".

He said: "Some of the friends I had, the ones who had the biggest problems, were the ones who actually were never allowed to drink anything at home - whereas the ones who drink responsibly were the ones who were given a glass of wine or a small glass of beer or a shandy or something.

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Potential for Alcohol Policy to Decrease the Mortality Crisis in Russia
Evaluation & the Health Professions, Vol. 31, No. 3, 272-281 (2008)


Post-Soviet Russia experiences among the world's highest prevalence of alcohol-related problems, which contributes to high mortality rates in this region. Reduction in alcohol-related problems in Russia can have strong effects on mortality decline.

This article considers the plausibility of application of general principles of alcohol policy translated in the Russian Federation.

We conclude that alcohol policy approaches could be implemented in the same ways as they have been in other countries.

In addition, there should be special attention to decreasing distilled spirits consumption, illegal alcohol production, nonbeverage alcohol consumption, and enforcement of current governmental regulations.

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News Release - Micro RNA Implicated As Molecular Factor in Alcohol Tolerance

In recent years, a class of small molecules known as microRNAs have been found to play an important role in regulating gene products in most animal and plant species. A new study now indicates that microRNA may influence the development of alcohol tolerance, a hallmark of alcohol abuse and dependence. Researchers supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health, report the findings in the July 31, 2008 issue of the journal Neuron.

“This is an important contribution to efforts aimed at identifying the molecular bases of alcohol tolerance,” notes NIAAA Director Ting-Kai Li, M.D.

Tolerance is the decrease in sensitivity to alcohol that develops with both single and repeated exposures to alcohol over time. Individuals who develop high tolerance (low sensitivity) to alcohol are at increased risk for becoming alcohol dependent. Thus, an important research objective has been to identify the adaptations within individual molecules that underlie tolerance.

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Posttranscriptional Regulation of BK Channel Splice Variant Stability by miR-9 Underlies Neuroadaptation to Alcohol
Neuron, Vol 59, 274-287, 31 July 2008


Tolerance represents a critical component of addiction. The large-conductance calcium- and voltage-activated potassium channel (BK) is a well-established alcohol target, and an important element in behavioral and molecular alcohol tolerance.

We tested whether microRNA, a newly discovered class of gene expression regulators, plays a role in the development of tolerance. We show that in adult mammalian brain, alcohol upregulates microRNA miR-9 and mediates posttranscriptional reorganization in BK mRNA splice variants by miR-9-dependent destabilization of BK mRNAs containing 3′UTRs with a miR-9 Recognition Element (MRE).

Different splice variants encode BK isoforms with different alcohol sensitivities. Computational modeling indicates that this miR-9-dependent mechanism contributes to alcohol tolerance. Moreover, this mechanism can be extended to include regulation of additional miR-9 targets relevant to alcohol abuse.

Our results describe a mechanism of multiplex regulation of stability of alternatively spliced mRNA by microRNA in drug adaptation and neuronal plasticity.


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Request Reprint E-Mail: steven.treistman@umassmed.edu
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Tax system hurting drinks industry - report

DARINA DALY

Ireland has one of the most heavily taxed drinks industries in Europe, with €1 in every €3 spent on alcohol being taxed, according to a report published today. The report carried out by the industry itself also shows that the number of people employed by drinks manufacturers has fallen by 27 per cent in the last eight years and that over half of Irish pubs had sales of under €200,000 per year.

Chairman of the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland (DIGI), Michael Patten, said Irish companies were losing out to foreign manufacturers with a 22 per cent drop in the consumption of domestically produced alcohol. In contrast, the volume of beverages produced abroad but consumed in Ireland had risen by 90 per cent since 2000.

The DIGI report also highlighted the problems of higher input costs and falling national competitiveness as well as issues of taxation as being the greatest threat to the industry, which Mr Patten said made made a compelling argument for wage restraint in the current partnership talks.
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Framework convention on alcohol control mooted

Aarti Dhar

NEW DELHI: Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Anbumani Ramadoss has suggested a framework convention on alcohol control similar to that of the existing convention on tobacco control.

“I voice the sentiments of one-sixth of humanity living in the world’s largest democracy and would appreciate your support and advocacy on this important public health initiative,” he said in his opening remarks at the India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) Trilateral Meeting held here on Tuesday.

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First-Trimester Maternal Alcohol Consumption and the Risk of Infant Oral Clefts in Norway: A Population-based Case-Control Study
American Journal of Epidemiology Advance Access published online on July 30, 2008


Although alcohol is a recognized teratogen, evidence is limited on alcohol intake and oral cleft risk.

The authors examined the association between maternal alcohol consumption and oral clefts in a national, population-based case-control study of infants born in 1996–2001 in Norway.

Compared with nondrinkers, women who reported binge-level drinking (5 drinks per sitting) were more likely to have an infant with cleft lip with or without cleft palate (odds ratio = 2.2, 95% confidence interval: 1.1, 4.2) and cleft palate only (odds ratio = 2.6, 95% confidence interval: 1.2, 5.6). Odds ratios were higher among women who binged on three or more occasions: odds ratio = 3.2 for cleft lip with or without cleft palate (95% confidence interval: 1.0, 10.2) and odds ratio = 3.0 for cleft palate only (95% confidence interval: 0.7, 13.0).

Maternal binge-level drinking may increase the risk of infant clefts.

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Beer Back to Double-Digit Lead Over Wine as Favored Drink

Shift back to beer most evident among 30- to 49-year-olds

by Jeffrey M. Jones

PRINCETON, NJ -- Beer has regained a comfortable margin over wine when U.S. drinkers are asked to name which alcoholic beverage they most often drink. In recent years, wine had narrowed the gap, including pulling slightly ahead in 2005 (though not by a significant margin), but for the first time since 2002, beer enjoys a better-than-double-digit advantage over wine.

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Context-Induced Relapse of Conditioned Behavioral Responding to Ethanol Cues in Rats
Biological Psychiatry Volume 64, Issue 3, 1 August 2008, Pages 203-210

The environmental context in which drug-conditioned cues are encountered could modulate the capacity of such cues to trigger relapse in abstinent addicts. We explored this hypothesis using a behavioral animal model.

At test, port entries during the CS+ increased compared with extinction levels, while responding during the CS− remained unchanged (n = 11). This effect was attenuated after multiple extinction sessions in three distinct contexts (n = 18), compared with an equivalent number of extinction sessions in a single unique context (n = 16). Context-dependent renewal of port entries was also observed to a CS+ paired with 14% sucrose (n = 7) but not to a CS+ paired with 2% sucrose (n = 8).

Environmental contexts can trigger the relapse of behavioral responding to ethanol- and sucrose-predictive cues in rats. For ethanol, this effect can be reduced by extinguishing responses to the ethanol cue in multiple distinct contexts, a manipulation that could increase the efficacy of cue-reactivity treatments for addiction.

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Alcohol consumption and the risk of self-reported perennial and seasonal allergic rhinitis in young adult women in a population-based cohort study
Clinical & Experimental Allergy Volume 38 Issue 7, Pages 1179 - 1185

Alcohol consumption has been suggested to be associated with the development of allergic rhinitis (AR), but there is limited data on the topic.

The objective of this study was to investigate the association between alcohol consumption and the risk of developing AR among young women.

During follow-up, 831 women developed seasonal AR and 523 women developed perennial AR, corresponding to 14% and 9%. Alcohol consumption was positively associated with the risk of developing perennial AR. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) for perennial AR was 1.78 (95% CI, 1.13–2.80) among women drinking more than 14 drinks/week compared with women drinking <1>

In this population of young adult women, alcohol consumption was associated with an increased risk of developing perennial AR.

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Katine: hidden habits go untackled

• Katy Taylor
• guardian.co.uk,
• Monday July 28 2008

Recent studies have shown that alcohol dependency is rife in Uganda but not many people seem to be talking about it.

"When I was offered alcohol as a young teenager, I always beat the temptation to have a drink. But one time I thought I'd give it a go. The adults that came to the shop to buy alcohol poured some into a tea cup so nobody would know what was taking place. It was beer and this was my first sip."

Willie Omongin's experience of his first drink is not unusual. Early exposure to alcohol and peer pressure to try it are common in Uganda, where drinking is often a cultural symbol of male virility. Omongin, from the Teso region where Katine sub-county lies, survived his initial brushes with alcohol, but many are not as lucky.

According to the World Health Organisation's (WHO) 2004 Global Status Report, Uganda is the world's greatest consumer of alcohol per capita, drinking twice that of neighbouring countries. In contrast to general assumptions that wealthier nations drink more, Ugandans also statistically get through twice as much alcohol as Americans. Of course, these figures don't take into account unrecorded consumption which is common and wide-spread.

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A Steep Increase in Domestic Fatal Medication Errors With Use of Alcohol and/or Street Drugs
Arch Intern Med. 2008;168(14):1561-1566.

Increasingly, medications are consumed outside of clinical settings, with relatively little professional oversight. Despite this trend, previous studies of medication errors have focused on clinical settings.

The overall FME death rate increased by 360.5% (1983-2004). This increase far exceeds the increase in death rates from adverse effects of medications (33.2%) or from alcohol and/or street drugs (40.9%). The increase in FMEs varies markedly by type. Type 1 (domestic FMEs combined with alcohol and/or street drugs) shows the largest increase (3196%). In contrast, type 4 (nondomestic FMEs not involving alcohol and/or street drugs) shows the smallest increase (5%). Types 2 and 3 show intermediate increases. Type 2 (domestic FMEs not involving alcohol and/or street drugs) increased by 564%. Type 3 (nondomestic FMEs combined with alcohol and/or street drugs) increased by 555%. Thus, domestic FMEs combined with alcohol and/or street drugs have become an increasingly important health problem compared with other FMEs.

These findings suggest that a shift in the location of medication consumption from clinical to domestic settings is linked to a steep increase in FMEs. It may now be possible to reduce FMEs by focusing not only on clinical settings but also on domestic settings.

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Identification of Quantitative Trait Loci and Candidate Genes Influencing Ethanol Sensitivity in Honey Bees
Behavior Genetics Online First 26 July 2008

Invertebrate models have greatly furthered our understanding of ethanol sensitivity and alcohol addiction. The honey bee (Apis mellifera), a widely used behavioral model, is valuable for comparative studies.

A quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping experiment was designed to identify QTL and genes influencing ethanol vapor sensitivity. A backcross mating between ethanol-sensitive and resistant lines resulted in worker offspring that were tested for sensitivity to the sedative effects of alcohol. A linkage map was constructed with over 500 amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and sequence-tagged site (STS) markers.

Four QTL were identified from three linkage groups with log of odds ratio (LOD) scores of 2.28, 2.26, 2.23, and 2.02. DNA from markers within and near QTL were cloned and sequenced, and this data was utilized to integrate our map with the physical honey bee genome.

Many candidate genes were identified that influence synaptic transmission, neuronal growth, and detoxification. Others affect lipid synthesis, apoptosis, alcohol metabolism, cAMP signaling, and electron transport.

These results are relevant because they present the first search for QTL that affect resistance to acute ethanol exposure in an invertebrate, could be useful for comparative genomic purposes, and lend credence to the use of honey bees as biomedical models of alcohol metabolism and sensitivity.

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