Alcohol is readily distributed throughout the body in the blood stream and crosses biological membranes, which affect virtually all\r\nbiological processes inside the cell. Excessive alcohol consumption induces numerous pathological stress responses, part of which\r\nis endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress response. ER stress, a condition under which unfolded/misfolded protein accumulates in\r\nthe ER, contributes to alcoholic disorders of major organs such as liver, pancreas, heart, and brain. Potential mechanisms that\r\ntrigger the alcoholic ER stress response are directly or indirectly related to alcohol metabolism, which includes toxic acetaldehyde\r\nand homocysteine, oxidative stress, perturbations of calcium or iron homeostasis, alterations of S-adenosylmethionine to Sadenosylhomocysteine\r\nratio, and abnormal epigenetic modifications. Interruption of the ER stress triggers is anticipated to have\r\ntherapeutic benefits for alcoholic disorders.
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