Sex- and ALDH2-dependent differences in alcohol metabolism and psychomotor performance: a study in Han Chinese adults after binge drinking

Psychomotor impairments due to alcohol consumption may lead to a series of negative consequences. However, the influence of sex and <i>ALDH2</i> polymorphism on psychomotor dysfunction has not yet been investigated. One-hundred and three participants, genotyped for <i>ALDH2</i> rs671, were administered a dose of 1.0 g/kg of white spirits. The blood ethanol concentration (BEC) and acetaldehyde concentration (BAAC) were measured at specific time intervals before and after alcohol consumption. Additionally, auditory simple reaction time (ASRT), visual choice reaction time (VCRT), pursuit tracking task (PTT) and digit-symbol substitution test (DSST) were used to evaluate psychomotor function. Linear mixed-effects model was used to analyze the effects of sex and the <i>ALDH2</i> genotype on alcohol metabolism and psychomotor function.. Acetaldehyde metabolism depended on both <i>ALDH2</i> genotype and sex. Women with <i>ALDH2*1/*1</i> genotype exhibited 2.21 to 18.27 µmol/L higher BAAC levels than men with the same genotype. Conversely, among participants with <i>ALDH2*1/*2</i> genotype, BAAC levels of women were 0.25 to 31.32 µmol/L lower than men. The impact of <i>ALDH2</i> genotype on psychomotor function varied across the four tests. VCRT increased significantly in men with <i>ALDH2*1/*2</i> genotype compared to those with<i> ALDH2*1/*1</i> at 2–4 h post-consumption. In the PTT test, the percentage of time on target decreased by 3.83% and 3.11% in women relative to men at 1 and 2 h post-consumption, respectively. Notably, ASRT performance was significantly correlated with BAAC levels. No effects of <i>ALDH2</i> genotype and sex were observed on DSST performance. <i>ALDH2</i> genotype and sex independently or interactively contribute to alcohol-related psychomotor impairment.