Alcohol and Immunity

The review systematizes data characterizing the impact of moderate and excessive alcohol consumption on the immune system of humans and animals. In particular, the results of experimental and clinical studies on the effect of ethanol on the function of cells of congenital and adaptive immunity are presented, depending on the dose and duration of its exposure, which affects the response of the organism to agents of an infectious and non-infectious nature. The issues of chronic lymphopenia induced by chronic alcohol consumption are discussed in detail, which leads to a decrease in the number of naive lymphocytes in circulation. The dose-dependent and temporary effects of alcohol on the functional activity and homeostasis of immune cells of the central nervous system (CNS), in particular, astrocytes and microglia, are considered. In general, the review analyzed a complex of complex interactions between ethanol, its metabolites and functional activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary- adrenal system and the immune system.