Scientists give new insight into a molecular target of alcohol

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2024-02-12 09:00:03

Ethanol -- the compound found in alcoholic beverages -- interferes with the normal functioning of a long list of biological molecules, but how each of these interactions contributes to the behavioral effects of alcohol is not fully understood. A guiding, but elusive, goal of researchers is to identify the protein (or proteins) to which ethanol binds that makes some people vulnerable to excessive drinking. Solving this question would point the way to effective therapies for alcohol use disorder, which affects more than 10% of the U.S. adult population and is responsible for a myriad of health and societal issues.

Previous studies identified one such molecule, a protein widely expressed in the brain, called the BK channel. Ethanol can directly interact with a component of BK channels, known as the α subunit, to facilitate their opening. However, scientists at Scripps Research found that this interaction may not drive behaviors related to alcohol abuse as much as previously thought. Their study, appearing in the journal Molecular Psychiatry on December 22, 2023, demonstrates that preventing ethanol from interacting with the BK α subunit does not reduce or increase the motivation to consume alcohol in mice.

The relationship between the BK α subunit and ethanol had previously been explored in vitro, ex vivo and in live invertebrates. Previous studies suggested that the BK α subunit was involved in an animal's response to alcohol exposure, but there was a gap in understanding its role in mammals, particularly for the control of alcohol drinking.