Peroxide mediates ethanol-induced cytotoxicity in PC12 cells.

Pheochromocytoma (PC12) cell cultures exhibited a loss of cells and increase in intracellular oxidative stress when exposed to ethanol (EtOH) for 24 h. Catalase, an enzyme that hydrolyzes hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) to O(2) and H(2)O can attenuate EtOH-induced cell loss and oxidative stress in PC12 cells. This study provides the first clear evidence that oxidative stress in the form of elevated intracellular H(2)O(2) is a primary mechanism of EtOH neurotoxicity in PC12 cells.