摘要：虽然酒精在身体中（如大脑）有一个很广泛的药理作用。然而，我们对酒精改变大脑神经元活动的分子机制还知之甚少。2010年6月酒精中毒研究会年会专题讨论会在圣安东尼奥举办，与会人员在演讲中说：最近，一项关于大脑中酒精与大脑蛋白相互作用的研究结果揭示了大脑中酒精的活动。
相关研究论文将刊登于2011年9月的 Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research。
这篇文章的作者Rebecca J. Howard是德州大学Alcohol & Addiction 研究所Austin Waggoner中心的博士后研究员，他说：“酒是世界上最常见的一种药物，相关的记载已有很长的历史，但与其他的药物相比，我们关于酒精对大脑影响方面的认识是有限的。”
多年来，大多数研究人员认为：酒精对大脑表现出一种非特异性影响，并且只是通过溶入神经元细胞膜而扰乱神经元的功能。但在过去10到15年左右的时间里，我们对酒精活动的理解已经大大转变了。现在有确凿的实验证据表明，在大脑中，酒精会与关键性靶蛋白以一种非常特别的方式结合在一起，最终导致对人体行为上的影响，这篇文章对最近的一些研究成果做了综述。
Howard和Homanics（美国匹兹堡大学麻醉学、药理学及化学生物学教授）都希望，这项研究能有助于治疗酗酒，以及个人因酒精而产生的一些问题。
Homanics 说：“将会出现一项伟大的进展，在分子水平上了解酒精对大脑的影响。” 如果我们想要制定合理的治疗方案，以有效地应对酒精带来的疾病，那么，在分子水平上了解酒精如何对大脑蛋白产生影响是必不可少的。
生物探索推荐英文原文：
Understanding Alcohol's Damaging Effects On The Brain
While alcohol has a wide range of pharmacological effects on the body, the brain is a primary target. However, the molecular mechanisms by which alcohol alters neuronal activity in the brain are poorly understood. Participants in a symposium at the June 2010 annual meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism in San Antonio, Texas addressed recent findings concerning the interactions of alcohol with prototype brain proteins thought to underlie alcohol actions in the brain.
Proceedings will be published in the September 2011 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research and are currently available at Early View.
"Alcohol is the most common drug in the world, has been used by diverse human communities longer than recorded history, yet our understanding of its effects on the brain is limited when compared to other drugs," said Rebecca J. Howard, a postdoctoral fellow at The University of Texas at Austin Waggoner Center for Alcohol & Addiction Research and corresponding author for this study.
For many years, most investigators thought that alcohol exerted nonspecific effects on the brain and simply perturbed neuronal function by dissolving in the membranes of nerve cells. However, our understanding of alcohol action has dramatically shifted in the last 10 to 15 years or so. There is now solid experimental evidence that alcohol binds in a very specific manner to key protein targets in the brain to cause the drug's well known behavioral effects. This review summarizes some of the most recent research."
Both Howard and Homanics are hopeful that this research will aid the development of therapies and treatments for individuals with alcohol problems.
"Great progress is being made in understanding how alcohol exerts its effects on the brain at the molecular level," noted Homanics. "Understanding how alcohol affects brain proteins on a molecular level is essential if we are to effectively develop rational treatments to combat alcohol use disorders."
