SHORT COMMUNICATION URINARY STEROID PROFILES AND ALCOHOL-RELATED BLOOD PRESSURE ELEVATION

SUMMARY 1. From an earlier cross-sectional survey of 343 public servants, 15 pairs of non-smoking teetotallers and heavy drinkers (alcohol intake more than 350 mL/week) were matched for age and adiposity and utilized for a case-control study of the effects of alcohol on 110-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (1 ID-OHSD) activity and blood pressure. 2. Two successive 24 h urine collections were analysed by radio-immunoassay (RIA) for cortisol excretion, and for the cortisol and cortisone metabolites, tetrahydrocortisol (THC), allo-tetrahydrocortisol (allo-THC) and tetrahydrocortisone (THE), by capillary column gas chromatography. 3. Heavy drinkers had higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP) than teetotallers (132.6f2.5 vs 123.2k 1.3 and 78.75 1.6 vs 71.7+ 1.4, respectively; unpaired t-test, Pteetotallers (1.81 k 0.20 vs 2.03+0.20), consistent with no effect of alcohol on IlP-OHSD activity. The ratio of THC to allo-THC was increased in drinkers compared with teetotallers (1.49 k 0.18 vs 1.05 k0.13; unpaired t-test, P<0.05), consistent with either a decrease in 5a-reductase activity or an increase in 50reductase activity. 5. This study provides no evidence for alcohol-related inhibition of 1 10-OHSD, despite substantially higher blood pressures in heavy drinkers compared to teetotallers. Such an effect is, therefore, unlikely to contribute significantly to the mechanism of alcohol-related hypertension. The increase in the THC: allo-THC ratio is consistent with a redox effect on steroid metabolism.