Use of a crossed high alcohol preferring (cHAP) mouse model with the NIAAA-model of chronic-binge ethanol intake to study liver injury

• Published in: Alcohol and alcoholism (Oxford) 2017-11, Vol.52 (6), p.629-637
• Main Authors: Thompson, Kyle J, Nazari, Shayan S, Jacobs, W Carl, Grahame, Nicholas J, McKillop, Iain H
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Binge Drinking - genetics; Binge Drinking - metabolism; Binge Drinking - pathology; Disease Models, Animal; Ethanol - administration & dosage; Ethanol - toxicity; Liver Diseases, Alcoholic - genetics; Liver Diseases, Alcoholic - metabolism; Liver Diseases, Alcoholic - pathology; Male; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (U.S.); Original Manuscript; Random Allocation; United States
• ISSN: 0735-0414; 1464-3502
• DOI: 10.1093/alcalc/agx063

This study sought to compare mice bred to preferentially consume high amounts of alcohol (crossed-high alcohol preferring, cHAP) to c57BL/6 (C57) mice using a chronic-binge ethanol ingestion model to induce alcoholic liver disease (ALD). Male C57 and cHAP mice were randomized to a Lieber-DeCarli control (LDC) diet, Lieber-DeCarli 5% (v/v) ethanol (LDE) diet or free-choice between 10% (v/v) ethanol in drinking water (EtOH-DW) and DW. After 4 weeks mice were gavaged with either 9 g/kg maltose-dextrin (LDC+MD) or 5 g/kg EtOH (LDE+Binge, EtOH-DW+Binge). Nine hours later tissue and serum were collected and analyzed. cHAP mice on EtOH-DW consumed significantly more ethanol than cHAP or C57 mice maintained on LDE. However, cHAP and C57 mice on the LDE+Binge regiment had greater hepatosteatosis and overall degree of liver injury compared to EtOH-DW+Binge. Changes in pro-inflammatory gene expression was more pronounced in cHAP mice than C57 mice. Analysis of liver enzymes revealed a robust induction of CYP2E1 in C57 and cHAP mice maintained on EtOH-DW+Binge or LDE+Binge. However, while C57 mice exhibited higher basal hepatic glutathione than cHAP mice, these mice appeared more susceptible to oxidative stress following LDE+Binge than cHAP counterparts. Despite cHAP mice consuming more total ethanol prior to gavage when maintained on EtOH-DW, LDE followed by gavage created a more severe model of ALD in both C57 and cHAP mice. These data suggest factors other than total amount of alcohol consumed affect degree of ALD development in the chronic-binge model in cHAP mice. cHAP mice voluntarily consume high amounts of ethanol and exhibited hepatic injury when subject to chronic-binge ethanol feeding with the Lieber-DeCarli diet. However, hepatic injury was reduced in cHAP mice in a chronic-binge model following voluntary high ethanol consumption in drinking water.