Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 23, 2026

Assessment of Glutamine as a Fuel Source for Alveolar Macrophages Exposed to Chronic Ethanol Using an Extracellular Flux Bioanalyzer
Published on: November 15, 2024
Role of oxidative stress in alcohol-induced liver injury
Arthur I Cederbaum1, Yongke Lu, Defeng Wu
1Department of Pharmacology and Systems Therapeutics, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Box 1603, One Gustave L Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA. Arthur.cederbaum@mssm.edu
Abstract:
Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are highly reactive molecules that are naturally generated in small amounts during the body's metabolic reactions and can react with and damage complex cellular molecules such as lipids, proteins, or DNA. Acute and chronic ethanol treatments increase the production of ROS, lower cellular antioxidant levels, and enhance oxidative stress in many tissues, especially the liver. Ethanol-induced oxidative stress plays a major role in the mechanisms by which ethanol produces liver injury. Many pathways play a key role in how ethanol induces oxidative stress. This review summarizes some of the leading pathways and discusses the evidence for their contribution to alcohol-induced liver injury. Special emphasis is placed on CYP2E1, which is induced by alcohol and is reactive in metabolizing and activating many hepatotoxins, including ethanol, to reactive products, and in generating ROS.
Related Concept Videos
Oxidation of Alcohols
The process of oxidation in a chemical reaction is observed in any of the three forms:
Cellular Injury I: Introduction
Phase I Oxidative Reactions: Overview
Cirrhosis II: Pathophysiology
Radical Autoxidation
Phase I Reactions: Oxidation of Aliphatic and Aromatic Carbon-Containing Systems
Oxidation reactions are fundamental in aromatic carbon-containing systems. An example is the hydroxylation of phenobarbital, a process that transforms it into...
