Alcohol Metabolism, Minerals, Malnutrition, and Obesity

Vocabulary flashcards covering metabolic and nutritional aspects of alcohol digestion, macromineral and micromineral biochemistry, and states of malnutrition and obesity.

Ethanol

A hydroxyl-containing molecule ($\text{CH}_3\text{CH}_2\text{OH}$) found in alcoholic beverages that serves as the primary dietary source of alcohol and is catabolized in the human body by successive hepatic oxidations.

Auto-brewery syndrome

A rare condition caused by gut microbiome imbalances combined with carbohydrate-rich diets, where endogenous microbial fermentation produces ethanol in amounts sufficient to induce clinical alcohol intoxication symptoms.

Alcohol Dehydrogenases (ADHs)

A family of enzymes expressed mainly in the stomach and liver that catalyze the oxidation of ethanol into acetaldehyde while reducing $\text{NAD}^+$ to $\text{NADH}$.

First Pass Effect (Gastric ADH)

The pre-systemic oxidation of ethanol into acetaldehyde by gastric ADHs secreted in the stomach lining, which reduces the bioavailability and subsequent intestinal absorption of alcohol.

Microsomal Ethanol Oxidizing System (MEOS)

An ethanol oxidation pathway located in the hepatic endoplasmic reticulum that utilizes cytochrome P450 oxidase CYP2E1 to convert ethanol to acetaldehyde while oxidizing $\text{NADPH}$ to $\text{NADP}^+$ at high blood alcohol concentrations.

Acetaldehyde Dehydrogenases (ALDHs)

Hepatic enzymes that oxidize toxic acetaldehyde into acetic acid while reducing $\text{NAD}^+$ to $\text{NADH}$, allowing acetic acid to be converted into Acetyl-CoA for terminal oxidation in the TCA cycle.

Alcohol Flush Reaction

A genetic condition prevalent in Asian populations caused by mutations in ALDHs, leading to accumulation of toxic acetaldehyde that produces facial flushing, nausea, and headaches after alcohol consumption.

Disulfiram (Antabuse®)

A pharmacological inhibitor of ALDH used in the treatment of Alcohol Use Disorder to induce conditional avoidance by accumulating acetaldehyde and causing severe physical discomfort upon alcohol ingestion.

NAPQI

A toxic metabolite produced from acetaminophen by CYP2E1 oxidation in the MEOS, which accumulates excessively in chronic alcohol users due to CYP2E1 enzyme induction, leading to hepatotoxicity.

Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome

A neurological disorder characterized by ataxia, ophthalmoplegia, and mental confusion that results from thiamine (vitamin B1) deficiency, commonly observed in individuals with Alcohol Use Disorder.

Macrominerals

Essential inorganic elements required in human diets in amounts greater than $100\,\text{mg/day}$, including calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, chloride, and potassium.

Microminerals (Trace)

Essential inorganic elements required in human diets in amounts between $1\,\text{mg/day}$ and $100\,\text{mg/day}$, including copper, zinc, chromium, fluorine, iron, and manganese.

Ultra trace minerals

Essential inorganic dietary elements required in human daily amounts less than $1\,\text{mg/day}$, including iodine, molybdenum, and selenium.

Hydroxylapatite

An inorganic calcium-phosphate complex ($\text{Ca}_5[\text{PO}_4]_3\text{OH}$) that stores up to 98% of the body's calcium and forms the main structural component of bones and teeth.

Calcitriol

The active form of vitamin D produced by the kidneys in response to low serum $\text{Ca}^{2+}$, which increases serum $\text{Ca}^{2+}$ and $\text{P}_i$ by stimulating bone resorption, renal reabsorption, and intestinal absorption.

Parathyroid hormone (PTH)

A hormone secreted in response to low serum $\text{Ca}^{2+}$ levels that elevates serum calcium by inducing bone resorption, increasing renal $\text{Ca}^{2+}$ reabsorption, activating renal 1-hydroxylase, and decreasing renal $\text{P}_i$ reabsorption.

Calcitonin

A hormone released by C cells of the thyroid gland in response to elevated serum $\text{Ca}^{2+}$ levels that lowers serum calcium and phosphate by promoting bone mineralization and renal excretion.

Menkes syndrome

An X-linked genetic disorder caused by mutations in the $ATP7A$ gene, resulting in defective intestinal copper efflux, systemic copper deficiency, progressive neurological degeneration, and connective tissue defects.

Wilson disease

An autosomal recessive genetic disorder caused by mutations in the $ATP7B$ gene, resulting in impaired hepatic excretion of excess copper and pathological copper accumulation in the brain, eyes, kidneys, and skin.

Fluorine (as fluoride)

A trace micromineral added to water supplies that replaces the hydroxyl group in hydroxylapatite to form a mineral compound resistant to acid production by oral bacteria.

Malnutrition

A pathological state arising when essential required nutrient components are either deficient (undernourishment) or present in excess (over nourishment), impairing organismal growth and reproduction.

Kwashiorkor

A non-adaptive form of protein-energy malnutrition resulting from severe protein deprivation despite adequate carbohydrate intake, characterized by edema, stunted growth, fatty liver, decreased serum albumin, and skin lesions.

Marasmus

An adaptive physiological state of severe undernourishment where caloric deprivation exceeds protein deprivation, leading to extreme muscle wasting, fat depletion, arrested growth, and an absence of edema.

Body Mass Index (BMI)

An indirect measure of body fat calculated as $\text{BMI} = 703 \times \frac{\text{weight in pounds}}{(\text{height in inches})^2}$, defining overweight as $\text{BMI} > 25$ and obesity as $\text{BMI} > 30$.

Android obesity

Upper-body, apple-shaped fat accumulation defined by a waist-hip ratio $> 0.8$ in women or $> 1.0$ in men, which carries higher lipolytic activity and an increased risk of chronic cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.

Gynoid obesity

Lower-body, pear-shaped fat accumulation defined by a waist-hip ratio $< 0.8$ in women or $< 1.0$ in men, characterized by slower lipolysis rates and lower risk for chronic metabolic complications.

Leptin

A peptide hormone secreted by adipocytes that acts on the brain to suppress appetite and signal satiety, to which individuals with obesity frequently exhibit physiological resistance.

Ghrelin

An appetite-stimulating hormone produced by the gastrointestinal tract that signals hunger, whose circulating blood levels are inversely correlated with BMI.

Metabolic syndrome

A constellation of obesity-associated metabolic abnormalities including abdominal waist circumference ($> 40\,\text{inches}$ in men, $> 35\,\text{inches}$ in women), fasting hyperglycemia ($> 126\,\text{mg/dL}$), dyslipidemia, and hypertension.

GLP-1 agonist

A class of pharmacological therapeutics used in obesity management that delays gastric emptying, promotes satiety, increases insulin secretion, and decreases glucagon secretion to achieve weight reduction.