ETHANOL ALTERS BRAIN PHOSPHOLIPID LEVELS WHICH CORRELATE WITH ALTEREDBRAIN MORPHOLOGY

The effects of embryonic exposure un brain phospholipid levels were st udied by injecting various concentrations of ethanol into fertile chic ken eggs at 0 days of development. At 18 days of development, the leve ls of total phospholipids and various phospholipid classes were assaye d in brain tissue and correlated to neuron densities within the cerebr al hemispheres and the optic lobes. Although ethanol concentrations ra nging from 0 to 3700 mu m/Kg egg wt. failed to influence either total brain weight or total brain phospholipid levels, ethanol-induced chang es in the levels of individual phospholipid classes were observed. Whe n injected with 7 mu m of ethanol/Kg egg wt., a 2- to 3-fold increase in brain phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) levels were observed with reduc ed levels of brain phosphatidylcholine: (PC) and brain sphingomyelin ( SP). When injected with 74 mu m of ethanol/Kg egg wt., ethanol-induced increases in brain phosphatidylserine (PS) and PE were observed with ethanol-induced decreases in brain PC and SP. Cell fractionation studi es demonstrated ethanol-induced increases in brain PE and PS and ethan ol induced decreases in brain PC and SP in nuclear, mitochondrial, and microsomal membranes. These ethanol-induced alterations in brain phos pholipid profiles correlated with ethanol-induced reductions in neuron densities within the cerebral hemispheres and optic lobes. (C) 1997 E lsevier Science Inc.