Oral supplementation of choline attenuates the development of alcohol-related liver disease (ALD). null

Chronic alcohol intake has also been shown to be associated with alterations of choline metabolism in various tissue. Here, we assessed if an oral choline supplementation attenuated the development of alcohol-related liver disease (ALD) in mice. ALD development as determined by liver histology and assessing markers of inflammation (e.g., NOx, IL-6 and 4-hydroxynonenal protein adducts) was significantly attenuated by the supplementation of choline. Intestinal permeability in small intestine being significantly higher in ethanol-fed mice was at the level of controls in ethanol-fed mice receiving choline while no effects on intestinal microbiota were found. Choline also significantly attenuated the ethanol-induced intestinal barrier dysfunction in small intestinal tissue ex vivo, an effect almost completely abolished by the choline oxidase inhibitor dimbunol. Our results suggest that a choline supplementation attenuates the development of ALD in mice and that this is related to a protection from intestinal barrier dysfunction.