02.27.2013 – GOLLYGEE!

In keeping with today’s theme of alcohol-related science (see today’s earlier post), Popular Science recently had a write-up on using enzymes encapsulated in nanoparticles to help mice sober up after alcohol consumption. From PopSci:

Led by Yunfeng Lu, a chemical and biomolecular engineering professor at UCLA, researchers injected mice with three enzymes related to the breakdown of sugars, and after this worked, they tried it with two enzymes related to the breakdown of alcohol, alcohol oxidase (AOx) and catalase. They wanted to test the enzymes as both an intoxication preventive and a treatment.

When mice were fed a diet of alcohol and the nano-capsule at the same time, their blood alcohol concentrations were greatly reduced within 30-minute increments, compared to mice that were fed just alcohol or alcohol plus one of the enzymes. The team also tested it on drunk mice, and found the treatment greatly lowered yet another enzyme, alanine transaminase, which is a biomarker for liver damage.

For the original research published in Nature Nanotechnology click here.

How does mixing a caffeinated drinks like coffee or cola with alcohol change your level of drunkeness?

This month’s Scicurious column on Scientific American examines the interaction between caffeine and alcohol when we’re drinking. As you know alcohol is a depressant and caffeine is a stimulant. Does the combination of the two cancel each other out? Or is there a more complex interaction. An excerpt:

Consuming alcohol results in one set of effects, and consuming caffeine results in a completely different set of effects. When used in moderation, both alcohol and caffeine consumed alone can have positive outcomes. Despite this, most of us have experienced very negative consequences from consuming too much of either beverage. What about alcohol and caffeine together? When alcohol and caffeine are combined, the effects and ultimate results become much more complicated.

Alcohol drinkers who also consume caffeine feel awake, talkative, and stimulated for a much longer period of time compared to when they drink alcohol alone. However, the added caffeine does not make you less drunk or less likely to go home with a grenade. Furthermore, the sedation that always accompanies drinking alcohol is often muted, or experienced much later when caffeine is in the picture.

Click the link for much, much more.

GOLLYGEE!

Date: 02.27.2013

sobering up with nanoparticles

drunk on alcohol and caffeine