2012年10月25日 讯 /生物谷BIOON/ --每天喝几杯酒，一般被认为是一个很好的生活方式，可以促进心血管和大脑的健康。但是，由罗格斯大学开展的一项研究表明，温和的饮酒方式和酗酒之间有一明显界线，酗酒行为可以减少成人脑细胞的数量高达40％。
相关研究结果公布在Neuroscience杂志上，主要作者Tracey J. Shors表示：酗酒可能显著降低成人大脑结构的完整性。研究员Anderson说：适度饮酒可以成为酗酒，通常没有人意识到这一点。在短期内可能对运动技能或整体运作问题不会有任何显著的影响，但是从长远来看，这类行为可能影响学习和记忆功能。
Shors和Anderson研究员用血液中的酒精含量达到0.08％的啮齿类动物模拟中度至重度饮酒的人，在美国和其他许多国家的合法驾驶极限为酒精含量达到0.08％，结果发现含量达到0.08％对脑细胞产生负面影响。
研究人员发现与那些在空白啮齿动物相比，动物血液中的酒精含量达到0.08％后，大脑海马区神经细胞的数量减少了近40％。海马是大脑的重要一部分，新的神经元是已知的学习和记忆功能发育所必需的。在短期内，酒精的摄入量虽然不足以损害雄性或雌性大鼠的运动技能或防止它们的学习功能。不过，Anderson说，脑细胞的数量随着时间的推移会大幅减少，这可能会对成大脑结构的可塑性产生深远的影响。（生物谷：Bioon.com）
doi:10.1016/j.neuroscience.2012.08.018
PMC:
PMID:
Moderate drinking? Alcohol consumption significantly decreases neurogenesis in the adult hippocampus
M.L. Andersona, , M.S. Nokiab, , K.P. Govindarajuc, T.J. Shorsc,
Drinking alcohol in moderation is often considered a health-conscious behavior, associated with improved cardiovascular and brain health. However, “moderate” amounts of alcohol include drinking 3–4 alcohol beverages in a day, which is closer to binge drinking and may do more harm than good. Here we examined how daily drinking of moderate-high alcohol alters the production of new neurons in the adult hippocampus. Male and female adult Sprague–Dawley rats were provided free access to a liquid replacement diet that was supplemented with either 4% ethanol or Maltodextrin for a period of 2 weeks. Proliferating cells were labeled with 5-bromo-2-deoxyuridine (BrdU) and the number of BrdU-positive cells in the hippocampus was assessed after the final day of drinking. A subset of rats was also exposed to a motor skill or associative learning task to examine the functional effects of alcohol consumption. The drinking regime resulted in an average blood alcohol concentration of approximately 0.08%, which is comparable to the human legal driving limit in many countries. This level of intoxication did not impair motor skill learning or function in either sex, nor did the alcohol consumption disrupt associative learning 2 days after drinking. Therefore, moderate alcohol consumption did not disrupt basic sensory, motor or learning processes. However, the number of cells produced in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus was reduced by nearly 40%. Thus, even moderate consumption of alcohol for a relatively short period of time can have profound effects on structural plasticity in the adult brain.
