Ethanol’s impact on the brain: a neurobiological perspective on the mechanisms of memory impairment

• Published in: Molecular biology reports Vol. 51; no. 1; p. 782
• Main Authors: Hedayati-Moghadam, Mahdiyeh, Razazpour, Fateme, Pourfridoni, Mohammad, Mirzaee, Faezeh, Baghcheghi, Yousef
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.12.2024; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Alcoholic beverages; Alcoholism; Animal Anatomy; Animal Biochemistry; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Brain research; Cognition & reasoning; Cytokines; Developmental plasticity; Ethanol; Growth factors; Histology; Inflammation; Kinases; Life Sciences; Memory; Mental disorders; Mental health; Molecular biology; Morphology; Nervous system; Neural plasticity; Neurobiology; Neurological disorders; Problem solving; Review; Reviews; Synaptic plasticity; Synaptogenesis; Tumor necrosis factor-TNF; Brain; Neuroinflammation; Keywords; Ethanol; Memory Impairment
• ISSN: 0301-4851; 1573-4978; 1573-4978
• DOI: 10.1007/s11033-024-09748-3

Alcohol consumption is known to have detrimental effects on memory function, with various studies implicating ethanol in the impairment of cognitive processes related to memory retention and retrieval. This review aims to elucidate the complex neurobiological mechanisms underlying ethanol-induced memory impairment. Through a thorough search of existing literature using electronic databases, relevant articles focusing on the neurobiological mechanisms of ethanol on memory were identified and critically evaluated. This review focuses on the molecular and neural pathways through which ethanol exerts its effects on memory formation, consolidation, and recall processes. Key findings from the included studies shed light on the impact of ethanol on neurotransmitter systems, synaptic plasticity, and neuroinflammation in relation to memory impairment. This review contributes to a better understanding of the intricate mechanisms by which alcohol impairs memory function, offering insights for future research directions and the development of targeted interventions to alleviate these cognitive impairments. Graphical abstract