Whey, iron and gold: the gel you don't expect against alcohol abuse

A team of Swiss scientists has made a discovery that could revolutionize the way we treat alcohol abuse and its harmful effects on the body. Using a combination of unusual ingredients they created a gel that breaks down alcohol in the body, significantly reducing damage to the liver, intestines and other organs.

This innovation has already been successfully tested on mice, and paves the way for new strategies to tackle one of the most serious public health problems of our times. I'll link the study here and in the meantime I'll tell you what it's about.

Whey proteins and precious metals: an unexpected but effective mix

The secret of this anti-alcohol abuse preparation is in its unique composition. The researchers used common whey protein, boiling them for several hours until long and thin fibrils form. By adding salt and water as a solvent, the fibrils cross each other, forming a gel.

The advantage of a gel over other delivery systems is that it is digested very slowly, allowing a prolonged action in the body.

To break down the alcohol, the gel is equipped with several other elements. The researchers used individual iron atoms as the main catalyst, distributing them uniformly on the surface of the long protein fibrils.

We immersed the fibrils in an iron bath, so to speak, so that they can effectively react with the alcohol and convert it to acetic acid.

Jiaqi Su, ETH researcher and first author of the study

To trigger this reaction in the intestine, small quantities of hydrogen peroxide. These are generated by an upstream reaction between glucose and gold nanoparticles. Gold was chosen as a catalyst for hydrogen peroxide because the precious metal is not digested and therefore remains effective longer in the digestive tract.

The researchers included all of these substances in the gel. The result? A “multi-stage cascade” of enzymatic reactions that ultimately converts alcohol into acetic acid, a substance that is much less harmful to the body.

Tests on mice: promising results in reducing harm from alcohol abuse

The effectiveness of the new gel was tested on mice that were given alcohol only once and on mice that were given alcohol regularly for ten days. Thirty minutes after the single dose of alcohol, Prophylactic application of the gel reduced the alcohol level in mice by 40%. Five hours after drinking alcohol, their blood alcohol level dropped by as much as 56 percent compared to the control group. The treated mice showed very reduced stress reactions in the liver.

In mice that were administered alcohol for ten days, the researchers were able to demonstrate not only a lower alcohol level, but also a long-lasting therapeutic effect of the gel: the mice that were administered the gel daily together with alcohol showed significantly less weight loss, better fat metabolism in the liver, as well as better blood values. Other organs of mice, such as the spleen or intestines, and their tissues also showed much less damage caused by alcohol abuse.

A promising discovery awaiting human testing

Of course, several clinical tests are still needed before it can be authorized for human use, but the researchers (who have already filed a patent for the gel) are confident that this step will also be successful, since they have already shown that the Whey proteins that make up the gel are edible.

Instead of using larger nanoparticles, we opted for individual iron atoms, which can be distributed more evenly on the surface of the fibrils and thus react more effectively and quickly with alcohol.

Raffaele Mezzenga, coordinator of the study.

If this gel or other remedies under study if they successfully pass clinical trials on humans we will have precious weapons to reduce the damage of alcohol on an individual and social level. And then, finally, we will toast! With moderation.