Ethanol immunological effects

The limited available data in humans and animals indicate that exposure to 2-butoxyethanol or 2-butoxy-ethanol acetate under any scenario would not result in immunological effects however, lymphoreticular effects in the spleen and bone marrow, which are probably attributable to the hemolytic effects of 2-butoxyethanol, may occur in humans exposed to high levels of 2-butoxyethanol. 

In an in vitro study involving human lymphocytes, it was demonstrated that ethanol and nicotine, at noninhibitory levels when added alone, showed significant suppression of natural killer cell activity when added combined. Natural killer cell activity is crucial to good health. The authors conclude that the immunological suppression effects of the ethanol/nico-tine mix may have clinical implicationsJ68l... 

Four polysaccharides (FCp-1, FCp-2, FCp-3 and FCp-4) were isolated from citrus fruits (Citrus medica L. var. sarcodactylis) after hot-water extraction and ethanol precipitation. Among all, only the FCp-3, a polysaccharide with a molecular weight of 177.1 KDa, showed an immunological activity evaluated by splenocyte and thymocyte proliferation assay. FCp-3 displayed a significant splenocyte proliferation at a dose of > 25 microg/mL, and showed a moderate effect on thymocyte proliferation at the same dose [70]. 

Ethanol consumption and tobacco use are correlated. Ethanol consumers smoke more than nonsmokers and smokers are more likely than nonsmokers to consume ethanol [25, 81]. Cardiovascular, immunological, and carcinogenic effects are enhanced by the co-consumption of ethanol and tobacco. The following studies illustrate this fact. 

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