Vol:.(1234567890) Biological Trace Element Research (2023) 201:5346–5357 https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-023-03699-9 1 3 RESEARCH An Investigation into the Protective Efects of Various Doses of Boric Acid on Liver, Kidney, and Brain Tissue Damage Caused by High Levels of Acute Alcohol Consumption Ayşegül Oğlakçı İlhan 1  · Betül Can 2  · Fatih Kar 3  · Ayşe Çakır Gündoğdu 4  · İbrahim Söğüt 5  · Güngör Kanbak 2 Received: 10 February 2023 / Accepted: 4 May 2023 / Published online: 23 May 2023 © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2023 Abstract Acute high-dose alcohol consumption can lead to oxidative stress, which can cause harm to organs. In this study we aim to determine whether administering boric acid (BA) can protect certain organs (liver, kidney, and brain) from the damaging efects of alcohol by reducing oxidative stress. We used 50 and 100 mg/kg of BA. Thirty-two Sprague Dawley (12–14-week- old) male rats in our study were separated into four groups (n=8); control, ethanol, ethanol+50 mg/kg BA, and ethanol+100 mg/kg BA groups. Acute ethanol was given to rats by gavage at 8 g/kg. BA doses were given by gavage 30 min before ethanol administration. Alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) measurements were made in blood samples. The total antioxidant status (TAS), total oxidant status (TOS), OSI (oxidative stress index) (TOS/TAS), malondialdehyde (MDA) levels and superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities were measured to determine the oxidative stress induced by high-dose acute ethanol in the liver, kidney, and brain tissue, and the antioxidant efects of BA doses. According to our biochemical results, acute high-dose ethanol increases oxidative stress in liver, kidney, and brain tissues, while BA reduces the damage in tissues with its antioxidant efect. For the histopathological examinations, hematoxylin-eosin staining was performed. As a result, we found that the efect of alcohol-induced oxidative stress on liver, kidney, and brain tissues was diferent, and that giving boric acid reduces the increased oxidative stress in tissues due to its antioxidant efect. It was found that 100mg/kg BA administration had a higher antioxidant efect than in the 50mg/kg group. Keywords Alcohol · Boric acid · Oxidative stress · Liver · Kidney · Brain Introduction In recent years, the increase in economic freedom, the accel- eration of population growth, the decrease in traditional fam- ily pressure, the increase in stress, the emulation of mod- ern life, and various psychological conditions have caused an increase in alcoholic beverage consumption in Turkey. Alcohol consumption is among the most common causes of death, and approximately three million people die annually worldwide due to excessive alcohol consumption [1]. Alcohol taken into the body is frst absorbed by the gas- trointestinal system. Subsequently, 90% is excreted from the body by enzymatic oxidation from the liver. The liver converts alcohol to acetaldehyde through the action of the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase, and then the acetaldehyde is further broken down into acetate by the enzyme aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) [2]. Alcohol taken into the body is initially metabolized in the liver, so the frst efect of alco- hol is on liver cells [3]. However, alcohol consumed above * Ayşegül Oğlakçı İlhan ayseguloi@karatekin.edu.tr 1 Eldivan Vocational School of Health Services, Çankırı Karatekin University, Çankırı, Turkey 2 Department of Medical Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Eskisehir Osmangazi University, Eskisehir, Turkey 3 Department of Medical Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Kütahya Health Sciences University, Kütahya, Turkey 4 Department of Histology and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine, Kütahya Health Sciences University, Kütahya, Turkey 5 Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Demiroğlu Bilim University, Istanbul, Turkey