Daño hepático por alcohol
Abstract
Acute ethanol administration partially inhibits DNA and protein syntheses during
liver regeneration (LR) induced by partial hepatectomy (PH) in rats. Previous findings
that the magnitude of ethanol’s deleterious effects on LR are related to the route
and timing of its administration led us to perform studies at the ultrastructural level,
comparing ethanol effects on PH-induced LR, as a consequence of its administration
route. PH promoted alterations on the endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria,
accompanied by decreased glycogen and increased lipid content in cytoplasm.
Structural nuclear and nucleolar activities were also evident. Intragastric ethanol
administration practically abolished the adaptative changes found in PH-promoted
regenerating hepatocytes, whereas its administration through the intraperitoneal
route induced later ultrastructural modifications, indicating cellular proliferation.
These results suggest that ethanol, under certain conditions, could stimulate liver
proliferation triggered by PH. The mechanism underlying this surprising effect of
ethanol on LR remains to be elucidated. However, it is suggested that an altered
ethanol metabolism by rats subjected to PH could be involved.