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Metabolism

Alcohol, DNA and disease

Nature volume 475, pages 45–46 (2011)Cite this article

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Acetaldehyde, a reactive metabolite of ethanol, can damage DNA unless properly processed. A biochemical pathway involved in Fanconi anaemia seems to be essential for protection against such damage. See Article p.53

Fanconi anaemia (FA) is a chromosome-breakage disease that causes developmental defects, sterility, bone-marrow failure and a highly elevated risk of cancer1. Mutations in 15 genes are known to be associated with this disorder, and the encoded proteins are all thought to operate in the 'FA pathway'. This pathway preserves genome integrity by ensuring the correct repair of certain types of DNA damage — in particular, damage caused by agents that generate DNA inter-strand crosslinks. But patients with FA have not necessarily been exposed to crosslinking agents, raising a long-standing question about the identity of the endogenous agents that generate FA-associated DNA damage. On page 53 of this issue, Langevin et al.2 provide some answers. Somewhat alarmingly, they also shed light on how ethanol could lead to DNA damage.

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Figure 1: Acetaldehyde metabolism and the Fanconi anaemia pathway of DNA repair.

References

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  1. Hans Joenje is in the Department of Clinical Genetics and the Cancer Center Amsterdam/VUmc Institute for Cancer and Immunology, VU University Medical Center, NL-1081 BT Amsterdam, the Netherlands.,

    Hans Joenje

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  1. Hans Joenje
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Joenje, H. Alcohol, DNA and disease. Nature 475, 45–46 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/475045a

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