The effects of acute ethanol exposure and ageing on rat brain glutathione metabolism

Binge alcohol consumption in adolescents is increasing, and it has been proposed that immature brain deals poorly with oxidative stress. The aim of our work was to study the effect of an acute dose of ethanol on glutathione (GSH) metabolism in frontal cortex, hippocampus and striatum of juvenile and adult rats. We have observed no change in levels of glutathione produced by acute alcohol in the three brain areas studied of juvenile and adult rats. Only in the frontal cortex the ratio of GSH/GSSG was increased in the ethanol-treated adult rats. GSH levels in the hippocampus and striatum were significantly higher in adult animals compared to young ones. Higher glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity in adult rats was observed in frontal cortex and in striatum. Our data show an increased GSH concentration and GPx activity in different cerebral regions of the adult rat, compared to the young ones, suggesting that age-related variations of total antioxidant defences in brain may predispose young brain structures to ethanol-induced, oxidative stress-mediated tissue damage.