ABSTRACT
Ethanol is a non-specific depressant of the central nervous system. Ethanol interacts with many metabolic processes in brain, and has been shown to influence the metabolism of many central neurotransmitter substances. Ethanol is rapidly absorbed from the stomach and small intestine and quickly enters the brain from the blood stream. The prolonged consumption of ethanol leads to a state of tolerance. Ethanol dependence is a recognisable clinical entity and, like most forms of dependence, psychological and physical aspects of the condition can be distinguished. One major problem of the induction of ethanol dependence in laboratory animals is that they metabolise ethanol much more rapidly than does man. Much neuropharmacology over the past twenty years has attempted to explain drug action in the central nervous system in terms of effects on specific central neurotransmitter systems.
