Binge Drinking of Ethanol during Adolescence Induces Oxidative Damage and Morphological Changes in Salivary Glands of Female Rats

This study investigates morphological and biochemistry effects of binge ethanol consumption in parotid (PG) and submandibular (SG) salivary glands of rats from adolescence to adulthood. Female Wistar rats (n = 26) received ethanol at 3 g/kg/day (20% w/v) for 3 consecutive days/week from the 35th until the 62nd day of life. Animals were treated in two periods: 1 week (G1) and 4 weeks (G2), with a control (treated with distilled water) and an ethanol group to each period. In morphological analysis, morphometric and immunohistochemistry evaluation for smooth muscle actin (αSMA), cytokeratin-18 (CK-18), and vimentin (VIM) were made. Biochemical changes were analyzed by concentration of nitrites and levels of malondialdehyde (MDA). The difference between groups in each analysis was evaluated by Mann-Whitney U test or Student's t-test (p ≤ 0.05). PG showed, at one week of ethanol exposure, lower CK-18 and α-SMA expression, as well as MDA levels. After four weeks, lower CK-18 and higher MDA levels were observed in PG exposed to ethanol, in comparison to control group. SG showed lower α-SMA expression after 1 and 4 weeks of ethanol exposure as well as higher MDA levels after 1 week. Ethanol binge consumption during adolescence promotes tissue and biochemical changes with only one-week binge in acinar and myoepithelial PG cells.