title: Alcohol and immunology: Summary of the 2012 Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) meeting.
abstract: On October 27, 2012, the 17th annual Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) meeting was held at the Grand Wailea Hotel in Maui, Hawaii as a satellite meeting to the 2012 Society of Leukocyte Biology conference. This year's meeting focused on the influence of alcohol on signal transduction pathways in various disease and injury models. Three plenary sessions were held where invited speakers shared their research on alcohol-mediated alterations of cell signaling components, immune cell subsets, and inflammation. These studies suggested alcohol has a negative effect on cell signaling machinery and immune cell homeostasis, resulting in disease, disease progression, and increased mortality. Researchers also identified tissue-specific alcohol-linked elevations in markers of inflammation, including cold-shock proteins and microRNAs. Additionally, one study revealed the effects of alcohol on immune cell subsets in a model of allergic asthma.
authors.affiliation: Alcohol Research Program, Burn and Shock Trauma Research Institute, Department of Surgery, Loyola University Chicago Health Sciences Campus, Maywood, IL 60153, United States; Integrative Cell Biology Program, Loyola University Chicago Health Sciences Campus, Maywood, IL 60153, United States; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Loyola University Chicago Health Sciences Campus, Maywood, IL 60153, United States.
authors.forename: Jill A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Ippolito
authors.forename: Brenda J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Curtis
authors.forename: Mashkoor A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Choudhry
authors.forename: Elizabeth J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Kovacs
mesh_terms: D000437:Alcoholism / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D000818:Animals; D000431:Ethanol / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006706:Homeostasis / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology*; D016131:Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000187:drug effects; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000431:Ethanol
keywords: Binge drinking; Disease; Ethanol; Inflammation; Injury; Leukocytes