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A brief history of alcohol, immunity, and the Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG)
Alcohol 33 (2004) 169–170
Editorial
A brief history of alcohol, immunity, and the Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) Thomas R. Jerrells* Department of Pathology and Microbiology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, 986495 Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-6495, USA
It is a personal pleasure to introduce this Special Issue of Alcohol to present the proceedings of the Alcohol and Immunology Workshop, held in conjunction with the 8th Meeting of the Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) on November 21, 2003, at the Loyola University Medical Center, Maywood, Illinois, USA. I would like to acknowledge Dr. Elizabeth J. Kovacs, principal organizer, for making this meeting a success. Co-organizers who also participated in planning and implementation of this meeting and workshop were Dr. Luisa A. DiPietro, Dr. Robert T. Cook, and me. Because this meeting represented the rejuvenation of AIRIG, a brief history of the study of the effects of alcohol abuse on the immune system seems appropriate. Although the connection between alcohol abuse and increased susceptibility to infectious diseases was first described in the 1800s, it has only been recently that careful, mechanistic studies have been done to define specific cells that are affected by chronic alcohol abuse. In addition, the mechanisms of the now welldocumented immunosuppression associated with alcohol abuse are beginning to be unraveled. The study of the effects of alcohol on the immune system received a boost when funding for HIV research became available. This funding resulted in some very positive study results. However, unfortunately, there were some publications produced that lessened confidence in the general studies of alcohol and immunology. I will discuss some of the positive events in the history of alcohol and immunology studies later. In my opinion, one of the lowest points in the history of alcohol and immunology research occurred when an editorial, co-authored by Dr. Enoch Gordis, then Director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), and Dr. Leslie Isaki of the NIAAA, was published in Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research in 1993. The editorial presented a negative view of the state of the
* Corresponding author. Alcohol Editorial Office, c/o Three Forks Editorial Consultants, 11912 Gow Lane, Bellevue, NE 68123-1116, USA. Tel.: ⫹1-402-291-2862; fax: ⫹1-402-291-2904. E-mail address: [email protected] (T.R. Jerrells). 0741-8329/04/$ – see front matter 쑖 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi: 10.1016/j.alcohol.2004.11.001
research and a general skepticism of the hypothesis that alcohol abuse affects the immune system. It was largely in response to this editorial that AIRIG was formed. The stated purpose of AIRIG was to organize scientists from as many disciplines as possible to share data and ideas in an attempt to legitimize this field. On a positive note, there have been a number of researchers who have survived various study sections and obtained funding to do research in this important area. Notably, two Alcohol Research Centers—Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans and Emory University, Atlanta)—established and supported through the Alcohol Research Centers Program of the NIAAA, have a focus on inflammation, immunology, or both. Representatives from these Centers have contributed to this Special Issue. It seems clear to me that the field of alcohol and immunology is gaining momentum and credibility. This is, to some extent, because of the recognition of the clear role of alcohol abuse in the incidence and severity of hepatitis mediated by hepatitis C virus, and the study findings that show this effect of alcohol abuse are closely associated with suppression of the appropriate immune response to control the virus. I would submit that the excellent work of the individuals whose work is presented in this Special Issue and of others who participated in the 8th Meeting of AIRIG played an important role in the advancement of this field. This statement presents an excellent segue to my summary. I invite you to read the excellent review of the state of immunology as it pertains to the pathogenic effects of alcohol abuse presented in this Special Issue of Alcohol. I am sure you will be impressed with the progress that has been made. As is the long-standing policy that I established as Editorin-Chief for Alcohol, all manuscript submissions are peerreviewed. All work presented in this issue has been reviewed by top scientists in the field. This is also the second occasion in my six-year tenure as Editor-in-Chief in which I have published a paper in Alcohol that presents data obtained from my laboratory. The decision not to publish my work in Alcohol was simply to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest. To prevent an obvious conflict of interest, I assigned an Editorial Board Member with the appropriate
170
T.R. Jerrells / Alcohol 33 (2004) 169–170
expertise to act as the Decision Editor for this paper and assign two reviewers (anonymously) to the paper. I must say the reviewers provided a comprehensive, critical review, which is what I expected. I would like to acknowledge the efforts of these reviewers and all the reviewers who were
involved with the manuscripts published in this Special Issue. Their work and time are sincerely appreciated. Finally, I would like once again to acknowledge the hard work of Liz Kovacs and the other organizers of this meeting, which was above and beyond the call of their “day job.”
Editorial
A brief history of alcohol, immunity, and the Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) Thomas R. Jerrells* Department of Pathology and Microbiology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, 986495 Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-6495, USA
It is a personal pleasure to introduce this Special Issue of Alcohol to present the proceedings of the Alcohol and Immunology Workshop, held in conjunction with the 8th Meeting of the Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) on November 21, 2003, at the Loyola University Medical Center, Maywood, Illinois, USA. I would like to acknowledge Dr. Elizabeth J. Kovacs, principal organizer, for making this meeting a success. Co-organizers who also participated in planning and implementation of this meeting and workshop were Dr. Luisa A. DiPietro, Dr. Robert T. Cook, and me. Because this meeting represented the rejuvenation of AIRIG, a brief history of the study of the effects of alcohol abuse on the immune system seems appropriate. Although the connection between alcohol abuse and increased susceptibility to infectious diseases was first described in the 1800s, it has only been recently that careful, mechanistic studies have been done to define specific cells that are affected by chronic alcohol abuse. In addition, the mechanisms of the now welldocumented immunosuppression associated with alcohol abuse are beginning to be unraveled. The study of the effects of alcohol on the immune system received a boost when funding for HIV research became available. This funding resulted in some very positive study results. However, unfortunately, there were some publications produced that lessened confidence in the general studies of alcohol and immunology. I will discuss some of the positive events in the history of alcohol and immunology studies later. In my opinion, one of the lowest points in the history of alcohol and immunology research occurred when an editorial, co-authored by Dr. Enoch Gordis, then Director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), and Dr. Leslie Isaki of the NIAAA, was published in Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research in 1993. The editorial presented a negative view of the state of the
* Corresponding author. Alcohol Editorial Office, c/o Three Forks Editorial Consultants, 11912 Gow Lane, Bellevue, NE 68123-1116, USA. Tel.: ⫹1-402-291-2862; fax: ⫹1-402-291-2904. E-mail address: [email protected] (T.R. Jerrells). 0741-8329/04/$ – see front matter 쑖 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi: 10.1016/j.alcohol.2004.11.001
research and a general skepticism of the hypothesis that alcohol abuse affects the immune system. It was largely in response to this editorial that AIRIG was formed. The stated purpose of AIRIG was to organize scientists from as many disciplines as possible to share data and ideas in an attempt to legitimize this field. On a positive note, there have been a number of researchers who have survived various study sections and obtained funding to do research in this important area. Notably, two Alcohol Research Centers—Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans and Emory University, Atlanta)—established and supported through the Alcohol Research Centers Program of the NIAAA, have a focus on inflammation, immunology, or both. Representatives from these Centers have contributed to this Special Issue. It seems clear to me that the field of alcohol and immunology is gaining momentum and credibility. This is, to some extent, because of the recognition of the clear role of alcohol abuse in the incidence and severity of hepatitis mediated by hepatitis C virus, and the study findings that show this effect of alcohol abuse are closely associated with suppression of the appropriate immune response to control the virus. I would submit that the excellent work of the individuals whose work is presented in this Special Issue and of others who participated in the 8th Meeting of AIRIG played an important role in the advancement of this field. This statement presents an excellent segue to my summary. I invite you to read the excellent review of the state of immunology as it pertains to the pathogenic effects of alcohol abuse presented in this Special Issue of Alcohol. I am sure you will be impressed with the progress that has been made. As is the long-standing policy that I established as Editorin-Chief for Alcohol, all manuscript submissions are peerreviewed. All work presented in this issue has been reviewed by top scientists in the field. This is also the second occasion in my six-year tenure as Editor-in-Chief in which I have published a paper in Alcohol that presents data obtained from my laboratory. The decision not to publish my work in Alcohol was simply to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest. To prevent an obvious conflict of interest, I assigned an Editorial Board Member with the appropriate
170
T.R. Jerrells / Alcohol 33 (2004) 169–170
expertise to act as the Decision Editor for this paper and assign two reviewers (anonymously) to the paper. I must say the reviewers provided a comprehensive, critical review, which is what I expected. I would like to acknowledge the efforts of these reviewers and all the reviewers who were
involved with the manuscripts published in this Special Issue. Their work and time are sincerely appreciated. Finally, I would like once again to acknowledge the hard work of Liz Kovacs and the other organizers of this meeting, which was above and beyond the call of their “day job.”