Binge drinking can weaken the body’s ability to fight infections for at least 24 hours, say U.S. researchers.
Binge drinking is defined as consuming large amounts of alcohol over a short period of time to deliberately get drunk.
In experiments with mice, the researchers found that binge drinking affects toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), a protein that plays an important role in immune system activation. Specifically, heavy drinking suppresses TLR4’s ability to send signals that activate production of inflammatory cytokines — signaling molecules that begin the inflammatory response to infection.
The researchers also determined that binge drinking inhibits NF-B, a protein complex that controls DNA transcription and expression of some of the cytokines inhibited by alcohol.
“The time frame [after binge drinking] during which the risk of infection is increased might be at least 24 hours,” study author Stephen Pruett, of the College of Veterinary Medicine at Mississippi State University, said in a news release. “A persistent effect of ethanol on cells is indicated, such that inhibition of the response of some cytokines occurs even after the ethanol is cleared” from the body.