Alcoholism: The Neurochemistry of Addictiony

Alcoholism: The Neurochemistry of Addiction

Many people are affected by alcoholism. Physical dependence on alcohol is marked by chronic compulsive abuse. Moreover, for the severely dependent, alcoholic withdrawal can be life-threatening. Clearly, alcohol exerts a considerable effect upon the brain. Researchers have postulated that certain of these alterations may actually form the basis for alcohol addiction. Furthermore, such neurophysiologic phenomena may additionally be responsible for other addictive behaviors.

Ethanol is a psychoactive drug. Blood alcohol concentrations of approximately 1.0 gram/liter will intoxicate non-alcoholic persons; concentrations of 4.0 grams/liter typically induce lethal respiratory depression (Harper & Kril, 1990, pp. 207-213). The chronic consumption of ethanol leads to addiction (Lewis, 1990, pp. 47-63). Alcohol use and abuse affect many people. A recent study performed in the United States concluded that the rate for a lifetime diagnosis of alcoholism in the general population was 16 percent. For females, the rate was measured at 6 percent; whereas, among males it was found to be as high as 29 percent (Miller & Gold, 1993, pp. 105-112).

Perhaps the most important development in the study of alcoholism consists of the "disease concept" (Baciewicz, 1993, pp. 223-227). This concept was first cultivated during the 18th century by the founder of American psychiatry, Benjamin Rush. In his book, The Effect of Ardent Spirits upon

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d brain shrinkage seems to primarily affect the white matter. For example, research has shown that--compared to age-matched and sex-matched controls--the corpus callosum of alcoholics is significantly reduced in thickness. Although the cerebral cortex is less affected by alcohol, cortical neuronal counts have demonstrated a loss of neurons from the superior frontal cortex. Furthermore, this apparent regional loss correlates with CT scan and neuropsychological study results. Prolonged abstinence can reverse alcohol-induced brain shrinkage. CT scan data has indicated that alcoholics' brains exhibit decreased density. Hence, reversible white matter shrinkage could result from some change in one of the central nervous system's major structural elements. Lipids, for example, account for 50 to 60 percent of the human brain's dry weight. The various lipid components present include cholesterol, phospholipids, and galactolipids. Investigative analyses have shown that alcoholism causes an increase in the relative proportion of cholesterol in some cell membranes. Chin and Goldstein (cited in Harper & Kril, 1990, pp. 207-213) speculated that this alteration may represent some type of "adaptive response to chronic ethanol exposure"

Category: Medical - A