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To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2007.11.002 Byline: A. Dettling (a), G. Skopp (a), M. Graw (b), H.-Th. Haffner (a) Keywords: Gender differences; Ethanol elimination; Sex hormones; Progesterone; Liver weight Abstract: The goal of the investigation was to research the influence of sex hormones on the elimination kinetics of ethanol. Forty-seven healthy men (average age 25[+ or -]6.1 years) and 61 healthy women (average age 24[+ or -]2.4 years) received 0.79-0.95g of ethanol/kg body weight in the form of an alcohol beverage of their choice. The target concentration for both sexes was a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 1.10g/kg. Blood samples for the determination of the ethanol concentration followed in the elimination phase in 10-20min intervals. The sex hormone levels (estradiol, progesterone and testosterone) were determined concomitantly from the serum. In men, the mean testosterone concentration was 5.3[+ or -]1.6ng/ml, the mean estradiol concentration was 34.6[+ or -]13.6pg/ml and the mean progesterone concentration was 0.9[+ or -]0.3ng/ml. In women, the mean estradiol concentration was 47.6[+ or -]52.6pg/ml and the mean testosterone concentration was 0.8[+ or -]0.4ng/ml. Progesterone displayed a so-called dummy effect in women. In the high progesterone group (n =11), the mean concentration was 11.1[+ or -]3.5ng/ml and in the low progesterone group (n =50) the mean was 0.6[+ or -]0.3ng/ml. The mean hourly elimination rate (A60) was 0.1677[+ or -]0.0311g/kg/h in men. In women, the mean hourly elimination rate was 0.2044[+ or -]0.0414g/kg/h in the high progesterone group and 0.1850[+ or -]0.0276g/kg/h in the low progesterone group (p Author Affiliation: (a) Institute of Forensic Medicine and Traffic Medicine, University of Heidelberg, VoAstr. 2, 69115 Heidelberg, Germany (b) Institute of Forensic Medicine, University of Munich, NuAbaumstr. 26, 80336 Munich, Germany Article History: Received 31 July 2007; Revised 26 October 2007; Accepted 1 November 2007

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine whether the impacts of absinthe on attention performance and mood were different from those experienced with beverages that contain only alcohol. The ingredient causing absinthe's toxicity is believed to be thujone. Method: A total of 25 healthy subjects participated in the study. An attention performance test and two questionnaires testing different mood dimensions were used. Three drinks with an identical amount of alcohol but with different amounts of thujone were offered. Results: The results of the present study showed that the simultaneous administration of alcohol containing a high concentration of thujone had a negative effect on attention performance. Under this condition, the subjects tended to direct their attention to signals in the central field of attention and to neglect peripheral signals; the number of correct reactions decreased significantly in the peripheral field of attention, and reaction time and the number of 'false alarm' reactions increased significantly. The effects were most prominent at the time of the first measurement. When the subjects were under the influence of alcohol or were administered both alcohol and a low thujone concentration, these effects were not observed. The assessment of mood state dimensions showed that the anxiolytic effect of alcohol was temporarily counteracted by a high thujone concentration. Conclusions: As they are apparently opposed to the effect of alcohol, the reactions observed here can be explained by the antagonistic effect of thujone on the gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor. Similar alterations were observed for the other mood state dimensions examined., ABSINTHE IS AN ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE composed of extracts of a variety of herbs such as wormwood (Artemisia absinthium, L.), to which a particular psychedelic effect is ascribed. This effect is [...]