Laval University Cancer Research Center, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
Toxicol Lett. 2012 Apr 5;210(1):44-52. doi: 10.1016/j.toxlet.2012.01.005. Epub 2012 Jan 13.
Short-chain alcohols are embedded into several aspects of modern life. The societal costs emanating from the long history of use and abuse of the prototypical example of these molecules, ethanol, have stimulated considerable interest in its general toxicology. A much more modest picture exists for other short-chain alcohols, notably as regards their immunotoxicity. A large segment of the general population is potentially exposed to two of these alcohols, methanol and isopropanol. Their ubiquitous nature and their eventual use as ethanol surrogates are predictably associated to accidental or deliberate poisoning. This review addresses the immunological consequences of acute exposure to methanol and isopropanol. It first examines the general mechanisms of short-chain alcohol-induced biological dysregulation and then provides a tentative model to explain the molecular events that underlie the immunological dysfunction produced by methanol and isopropanol. The time-related context of serum alcohol concentrations in acute poisoning, as well as the clinical implications of their short-term immunotoxicity, is also discussed.
短链醇广泛存在于现代生活的多个方面。长期使用和滥用这些分子的原型，即乙醇，所产生的社会成本引起了人们对其一般毒理学的极大兴趣。而对于其他短链醇，特别是它们的免疫毒性，情况则要乐观得多。相当一部分普通人群可能接触到其中两种醇，甲醇和异丙醇。它们无处不在的性质，以及它们最终被用作乙醇替代品，可预料到会导致意外或故意中毒。这篇综述探讨了急性暴露于甲醇和异丙醇对免疫系统的影响。它首先检查了短链醇引起的生物失调的一般机制，然后提出了一个试探性模型，以解释甲醇和异丙醇引起免疫功能障碍的分子事件。还讨论了急性中毒时血清中酒精浓度的时间相关性以及其短期免疫毒性的临床意义。
