Sex-dependent factors of alcohol and neuroimmune mechanisms

Cruz, Bryan; Borgonetti, Vittoria; Bajo, Michal; Roberto, Marisa

doi:10.1016/j.ynstr.2023.100562

Cited by 2 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 171 publications

(265 reference statements)

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“…Paradoxically, as discussed further below, alcohol may be an effective hypoalgesic for the short-term relief of pain but long-term consumption of alcohol results in exacerbated pain, increasing an individual’s risk towards alcohol misuse and the development of AUD [ 51 ]. The sex specific effects in these studies support existing research highlighting sex (biological) and gender (psychosocial) differences in pain perception and tolerance [ 41 , 57 ] and suggest that men are at increased risk of developing AUD when self-medicating for nociceptive-pain, despite many studies indicating that females are disproportionally affected by chronic pain [ 58 ].…”

Section: Nociception and Nociceptive-painsupporting

confidence: 78%

“…More recent evidence, although limited, provide compelling evidence that there are sex differences in neuroimmune signaling and synaptic function as well as the disruptions that occur following chronic alcohol consumption. Sex differences can be seen in studies on transcriptomic analyses, cytokine regulation of the innate and acquired immune system, and regulation of alcohol intake by astrocytes and microglia (for a detailed review see [ 41 ]). Research on biological sex-dependent neuroimmune mechanisms is likely to provide insight into the relationship between gender and pain such as why woman have more experiences with perceived acute pain and show greater prevalence of some forms of chronic pain (e.g., fibromyalgia) [ 42 ].…”

Section: Nociception and Nociceptive-painmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Alcohol use and the pain system

Vigorito,

Chang

2024

Adv. Drug Alcohol Res.

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The World Health Organization’s epidemiological data from 2016 revealed that while 57% of the global population aged 15 years or older had abstained from drinking alcohol in the previous year, more than half of the population in the Americas, Europe, and Western Pacific consumed alcohol. The spectrum of alcohol use behavior is broad: low-risk use (sensible and in moderation), at-risk use (e.g., binge drinking), harmful use (misuse) and dependence (alcoholism; addiction; alcohol use disorder). The at-risk use and misuse of alcohol is associated with the transition to dependence, as well as many damaging health outcomes and preventable causes of premature death. Recent conceptualizations of alcohol dependence posit that the subjective experience of pain may be a significant contributing factor in the transition across the spectrum of alcohol use behavior. This narrative review summarizes the effects of alcohol at all levels of the pain system. The pain system includes nociceptors as sensory indicators of potentially dangerous stimuli and tissue damage (nociception), spinal circuits mediating defensive reflexes, and most importantly, the supraspinal circuits mediating nocifensive behaviors and the perception of pain. Although the functional importance of pain is to protect from injury and further or future damage, chronic pain may emerge despite the recovery from, and absence of, biological damage (i.e., in the absence of nociception). Like other biological perceptual systems, pain is a construction contingent on sensory information and a history of individual experiences (i.e., learning and memory). Neuroadaptations and brain plasticity underlying learning and memory and other basic physiological functions can also result in pathological conditions such as chronic pain and addiction. Moreover, the negative affective/emotional aspect of pain perception provides embodied and motivational components that may play a substantial role in the transition from alcohol use to dependence.

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Section: Nociception and Nociceptive-painsupporting

confidence: 78%

Section: Nociception and Nociceptive-painmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alcohol use and the pain system

Vigorito,

Chang

2024

Adv. Drug Alcohol Res.

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“…Genetic and preclinical studies support a relationship between neuroimmune signaling, excess alcohol consumption, and the development of an AUD [98], as reviewed in [14,39,51,99,100]. Promoting neuroinflammation is associated with increased alcohol drinking, with microglia specifically implicated in the escalation of alcohol drinking, the hallmark of an AUD [39,44].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The majority of preclinical research in the alcohol field has utilized male animals, with a dearth of literature exploring the effects of alcohol in females [10]. Furthermore, of the research that has explored sex-or gender-related differences in humans and preclinical models of alcohol use, data on female vulnerability to alcohol-induced effects are mixed [11,12] (for a review, see [2,10,13,14]).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Neuroimmune Activation and Microglia Reactivity in Female Rats Following Alcohol Dependence

Melbourne,

Wooden,

Carlson

et al. 2024

IJMS

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The rates of alcohol use disorder among women are growing, yet little is known about how the female brain is affected by alcohol. The neuroimmune system, and specifically microglia, have been implicated in mediating alcohol neurotoxicity, but most preclinical studies have focused on males. Further, few studies have considered changes to the microglial phenotype when examining the effects of ethanol on brain structure and function. Therefore, we quantified microglial reactivity in female rats using a binge model of alcohol dependence, assessed through morphological and phenotypic marker expression, coupled with regional cytokine levels. In a time- and region-dependent manner, alcohol altered the microglial number and morphology, including the soma and process area, and the overall complexity within the corticolimbic regions examined, but no significant increases in the proinflammatory markers MHCII or CD68 were observed. The majority of cytokine and growth factor levels examined were similarly unchanged. However, the expression of the proinflammatory cytokine TNFα was increased, and the anti-inflammatory IL-10, decreased. Thus, female rats showed subtle differences in neuroimmune reactivity compared to past work in males, consistent with reports of enhanced neuroimmune responses in females across the literature. These data suggest that specific neuroimmune reactions in females may impact their susceptibility to alcohol neurotoxicity and other neurodegenerative events with microglial contributions.

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Sex-dependent factors of alcohol and neuroimmune mechanisms

Cited by 2 publications

References 171 publications

Alcohol use and the pain system

Alcohol use and the pain system

Neuroimmune Activation and Microglia Reactivity in Female Rats Following Alcohol Dependence

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