Effect of ethanol on uptake of trichloroethylene in isolated perfused rat liver

The effect of ethanol on uptake of trichloroethylene in isolated perfused rat liver was investigated. The uptake of trichloroethylene was measured in both phenobarbital (PB) non-treated and PB treated rat livers. Furthermore, for PB treated rat livers, the fluorescence of reduced pyridine nucleotides, oxygen consumption, and scanning reflectance spectrum were measured in the liver, perfused with Krebs-Henseleit buffer saturated with a 92%O2-5%CO2-3%CO gas mixture. The uptake of trichloroethylene was decreased by 6.0% in the PB non-treated rat liver and 10.6% in the PB treated rat liver following the addition of ethanol. This uptake decrease was thought to arise mainly from the inhibitory effect of ethanol on mixed-function oxidation in the liver because of the corresponding decrease in oxygen consumption and absorbance difference delta A450-490nm. The inhibition was considered to be due to interference with electron transfer to the complex of substrate and cytochrome P-450. Increase in intracellular NADH might also affect the formation of trichloroacetic acid since the reduction of NADH in the cytosol attained a maximum with 20 mM ethanol.