Effect of Water Extracts of Crude Drugs in Decreasing Blood Ethanol Concentrations in Rats

Oral administration of ethanol to rats at a dose of 3 g/kg decreased the alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) activity in liver cytosol. The effects of water extracts of eight crude drugs, which are believed to have protective activities against alcohol toxicity, on the blood ethanol concentration and on the ADH activity in liver cytosol were examined. Water extracts of these crude drugs caused a rapid elimination of ethanol from the blood of normal rats when they were administered orally at 30 min before oral ethanol administration or simultaneously with ethanol. The rapid elimination of ethanol seems to be due to the effect of the water extracts in inhibiting the decrease of ADH activity in rat liver cytosol, and in supplementing nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (a coenzyme in ethanol metabolism). Among the eight crude drugs, water extracts of only three crude drugs (Mori Albae Fructus, Alpiniae Katsumadai semen and Dolichoris semen) decreased the blood ethanol concentration and inhibited the decrease of ADH activity in liver cytosol when they were administered at 30 min after ethanol. Water extracts of the other crude drugs did not accelerate the ethanol elimination or inhibit the decrease of the ADH activity when administered 30 min after ethanol.