Alcohol as one of the Biological Cause of Apoptosis And Cirrhosis Essay Example

cirrhosis, the paper will explain the chemical breakdown of alcohol in the liver, the genetics behind alcohol metabolism, and the health effect of alcohol use. In addition, the speech will cover one of the psychological effects of alcohol, which is hepatic encephalopathy. These findings emphasize on the need to have an effective prevention mechanism that will reduce exposure to alcohol.

The main organ that is responsible for alcohol metabolism in the body is the liver. In this case, alcohol is usually metabolized through several processes. The most common process is oxidative, which entails two enzymes namely alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH). These enzymes work together to break down the alcohol molecule with the aim of eliminating it from the body (Zakhari, 2004). The first step in this process involves ADH breaking apart alcohol to acetaldehyde, which is a highly toxic compound and known as carcinogen. The second step entails further breakdown of acetaldehyde to another, less active byproduct known as acetate. Acetate is then metabolized into water and carbon dioxide to enable easy elimination from the body. From this explanation, it is clear that alcohol metabolism in the liver leads to two main by products namely Acetaldehyde which is a toxic byproduct and acetate which is a safer byproduct. Although acetaldehyde does not stay in the body for long, research reveals that brief stay can cause significant damage to the liver tissue. In addition, some alcohol metabolism can take place in pancreas and the brain causing significant damage to tissues and cells. Despite the toxic nature of the acetaldehyde, research shows that this product is somehow responsible for some physiological and behavioral effects associated with

alcohol. These psychological effects have been tested using lab animals (Rehm, 2011). For example, when acetaldehyde was injected to the body lab animals it led to memory impairment, sleepiness, and poor coordination, which are some of the effects of alcohol in human beings.

The second process of alcohol metabolism in the body is non-oxidative. This process is not common but its byproducts may have pathological and diagnostic impact in the body. During this process, alcohol is usually metabolized in two pathways. The first way leads to the formation of molecules known as fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEEs) because of the reaction between fatty acids and alcohol. The second pathway results to the formation of a fat molecule known as lipid that contains phosphorus called phosphatidyl ethanol (Vasiliou, 2015). After excessive alcohol consumption for long time, FAEEs are noticeable in serum and other body tissues. Although the impact of FAEEs has not been established, it is believed that this product can damage liver tissue leading to cirrhosis.
The Genetics behind Alcohol Metabolism

Regardless of the volume of alcohol an individual consumes, it is clear that the body can only metabolize a specific amount of alcohol in every hour. The amount the liver can metabolize within an hour depends of several factors like the size of the liver and body mass. Furthermore, research reveals that ADH and ALDH enzymes tend to vary from one person to another (Corrao, 2004). These variations can be attributed to genes. As a result, the working of these enzymes is different, which means they work faster and efficiently in some people compared to others. This shows that some people tend to metabolize alcohol into acetaldehyde,

or acetaldehyde to acetate faster than others do. If an individual has a faster ADH enzyme and a slow ALDH enzyme, this condition can cause accumulation of toxic acetaldehyde in the body leading to significant damage to the liver tissue. This places the individual in the risk of suffering liver cirrhosis. According to a survey of 30,000 people done in Denmark, results revealed that drinking alcohol and spirits creates high chances of liver disease than consuming wine. This research clearly shows alcohol as a major risk factor for cirrhosis (Gastroentero, 2009).
Health Consequences of Alcohol Use

From the above explanation on alcohol metabolism, it is clear that liver is the main organ responsible for the process of alcohol breakdown. Therefore, the liver is more vulnerable to the effects of alcohol metabolism products commonly known as alcohol-induced damage. Accumulation of toxic byproducts like acetaldehyde and FAEEs leads to significant tissue damage. This tissue damage progresses as the person continues to consume more alcohol until all healthy tissues in the liver are completely damaged. When this condition occurs, the liver is unable to perform its duties like detoxification of the blood. The person will suffer from liver cirrhosis. Research shows that more than 90% of individuals who drink alcohol heavily have high chances of developing fatty liver, which is a type of liver disease. However, only 20% of this people will develop severe alcoholic liver disease together with liver cirrhosis (Rehm, Taylor, Mohapatra, Irving, Baliunas, Patra, & Roerecke, 2010). In this case, the clinical implication is that, heavy consumption of alcohol leads to fatty liver and high levels of lipids in the blood. The first stage of liver tissue

damage is the formation of fatty liver, followed by apoptosis, fibrosis, and later cirrhosis. The formation of fatty liver is caused by shift in the redox nature of the hepatocytes resulting from ethanol metabolism by the ADH enzyme (Raynard, at el, 2002). This shift causes accumulation of fatty acids instead of oxidation. This implies that physicians should recommend strict alcohol abstinence from alcohol on patients with alcohol-induced live disease in order to stop the progress.
Psychological Effects of Alcohol - Hepatic Encephalopathy

One of the psychological effects of alcohol consumption is Hepatic encephalopathy (HE). It refers to the occurrence of confusion, intellectual impairment, and altered level of consciousness as well as coma (Wolf, 2015). In many cases, it occurs to patients suffering from liver cirrhosis. HE is accused by significant accumulation of toxic substances in the blood. An individual with HE has poor brain coordination because the liver is unable to detoxify blood. Poor brain coordination leads to changes in sleeping patterns, changes in mood and personality, depression and short attention. An individual consuming a lot of alcohol has high chances of developing HE because the liver tissue will be damaged leading to dysfunctioning of the liver. If the liver is unable to filter toxic substances from the blood, the individual brain suffer from HE. HE is a dangerous disease because it can lead to death. Research reveals that 70% of patients with liver cirrhosis tend to depict is the subtle symptoms of hepatic encephalopathy (Wolf, 2015).

However, Hepatic encephalopathy is usually reversible through treatment. This implies that physicians can suppress the release of toxic substances especially in the intestines. Suppression is done using laxative lactulose or the

use of non-absorbable antibiotics (Wolf, 2015). In case, the condition is acute there is need to have liver transplant. In addition, it is good to advice people to stop excessive use of alcohol because it can lead to irreversible psychological effects.
Conclusion

Finally, today many researchers have worked hard in establishing alcohol metabolism in the body specifically its oxidation by ADH and ALDH enzymes in the liver. However, there are certain gaps that need further research like the relative contributions of ADH, catalase, and microsomal enzymes to alcohol metabolism in the brain. However, there exists enough literature that supports alcohol consumption as the main risk factor of liver cirrhosis. The above presentation has explained the biological aspect of alcohol metabolism and the way it leads to liver cirrhosis. In addition, it has also covered one of the psychological effects of alcohol, which is hepatic encephalopathy. The presentation has also highlighted the clinical implications and physician recommendations on alcohol consumption as the risk factor of liver cirrhosis.