title: Transformation of ethyl alcohol to ethyl nitrite in acidified saliva: possibility of its occurrence in the stomach.
abstract: After taking alcoholic beverages, the ethanol is mixed with saliva and then gastric juice. As pH of gastric juice is around 2, the ethanol might be transformed to ethyl nitrite in the stomach by reacting with salivary nitrite. In this study, reactions between ethanol and nitrite in acidified saliva were investigated. The result indicates that nitrite in acidified saliva reacted with ethanol producing ethyl nitrite. It is discussed that ethyl nitrite might be formed in the stomach after drinking alcoholic beverages and that the ethyl nitrite might function as a donor of NO in intestinal and gastric tissues.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioscience, Kyushu Dental College, Manazuru 2-6-1, Kitakyushu 803-8580, Japan. takahama@kyu-dent.ac.jp
authors.forename: Umeo
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Takahama
authors.forename: Mariko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.forename: Sachiko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hirota
mesh_terms: D000143:Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D000431:Ethanol / Q000378:metabolism*; D005750:Gastric Juice / Q000378:metabolism; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D009573:Nitrites / Q000378:metabolism*; D012463:Saliva / Q000378:metabolism*; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D000143:Acids; D009573:Nitrites; D000431:Ethanol; C032712:ethyl nitrite