The effect of chronic alcohol intoxication and smoking on the activity of oral peroxidase

Peroxidase is the most important antioxidant enzyme in saliva. Through peroxidation of thiocyanate in the presence of H-2 O-2, peroxidase catalyses the formation of bacteriocidic compounds such as hypothiocyanate. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of chronic alcohol intoxication and smoking on the activity of oral peroxidase (OPO). A total of 37 volunteers participated in the study. This cohort consisted of 17 male alcohol-dependent smoking patients after chronic alcohol intoxication (AS group, alcohol + smoking) (mean age: 42 years; range: 26-55) (100-700 g/day of alcohol; 10-20 cigarettes/day) and 20 control male social drinkers (CNS group, control non-smokers) with no history of alcohol abuse or smoking (mean age: 42 years; range: 30-53). Salivary peroxidase activity was measured by the colorimetric method. The differences between groups were evaluated using the Mann-Whitney U test. There was significantly higher activity of OPO (p = 0.00001) and significantly lower salivary flow (SF) (p = 0.007) in alcohol-dependent smokers after chronic alcohol intoxication compared to the control group. OPO activity significantly correlated with the number of days of alcohol intoxication, but not with smoking. Gingival index (GI) was significantly higher in smoking alcohol-dependent persons than in the control group, and correlated with OPO activity. The sensitivity of the OPO test was 70% in smoking alcoholics, while specificity was 95%. The increased activity of OPO suggests chronic oxidative stress is more likely due to ethanol action than to smoking. Smoking alcohol-dependent persons have a worse periodontal status than controls. OPO activity as a marker of chronic alcohol abuse may help in the diagnosis of alcoholism. (Folia Histochemica et Cytobiologica 2012, Vol. 50, No. 3, 450-455)