Effect of Ethanol Metabolism on Redox State of Steroid Sulphates in Man

Abstract

Ethanol intake has been shown to cause a rapid increase of the concentration of androst‐5‐ene‐3β,17β‐diol 3‐sulphate and a simultaneous decrease of the concentration of dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate in plasma. The ratio between the 17β‐hydroxysteroid and the 17‐ketosteroid increased with the ethanol concentration up to 30–50 mg ethanol/100 ml blood when a 6 to 10‐fold increase was obtained. The ratios between the 3‐sulphates of 5α‐androstane‐3α, 17β‐diol and androsterone and between the monosulphates of 5α‐androstane‐3β,17β‐diol and 3β‐hydroxy‐5α‐androstan‐17‐one also increased during ethanol metabolism. Deuterium was rapidly incorporated into the D‐ring of the three C19 steroid diols, reaching about 20 atom per cent excess 10 to 20 min after oral administration of 0.1 g [1‐2H2]ethanol per kg body weight. The concentrations of steroids with a sulphate group at C‐17 did not change and deuterium was not incorporated into these steroids or into the 17‐ketosteroid sulphates. The ratio between the 3‐sulphates of 5‐pregnene‐3β,20α‐diol and pregnenolone increased only slightly and incorporation of deuterium into the side chain of the C21 diol reached a maximum of about 4 atom per cent excess about 1 hour after the ethanol administration. The results indicate that the ratio between 3‐sulphates of 17β‐hydroxysteroids and the corresponding 17‐ketosteroids in plasma is determined by the NADH/NAD+ ratio in the liver cell cytoplasm. They also indicate that the 3‐sulphate of 5‐pregnene‐3β,20α‐diol is not formed from pregnenolone sulphate at the same site or with the use of the same coenzyme molecules as the 17β‐hydroxysteroids. Copyright © 1970, Wiley Blackwell. All rights reserved