A New Definition of Beer Belly
Is this the bad plot line for a National Lampoon's movie? No, the results of his diagnosis has been reported in the International Journal of Clinical Medicine. So, how is this possible? This rare condition is called Auto-Brewery Syndrome. This man had an abundance of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S. cerevisiae) in his intestine so that his intestine was essentially acting as a brewery whenever he consumed a carbohydrate-rich diet. In our Biochemistry 2 (Metabolic pathways) course, we will actually cover the metabolic pathways that can cause this condition.
I do have to say that I found the quote concerning how the man could be sitting in church and suddenly become drunk humorous.
A link to an html version of the journal article can be found below:
A Case Study of Gut Fermentation Syndrome(Auto-Brewery) with Saccharomyces cerevisiaeas the Causative Organism
If you would like to read more about this, I have included the link to the article on the FOX News and NPR websites below.
Auto-Brewery Syndrome: Apparently, You Can Make Beer In Your Gut (NPR)
Man Brews Beer in Belly (FOX News)
How bizarre! (Almost as humorous as the spontaneous drunk man in the pew is that his own wife got a breathalyzer to check! I mean, would you just get him involved in AA or something? Why your own breathalyzer?) Obviously, S. cerevisae is not normal flora in the intestines. Since it is a yeast it is harder for the immune cells to detect because it is also eukaryotic. But how did it get there in the first place? I mean, I have never worried about eating my nutella toast and developing auto-brewery syndrome! How could the hydrochloric acid filled stomach let this one slip by?
ReplyDeleteThe NPR article mentioned that he had been taking strong antibiotics. So maybe the antibiotics wiped out the E. coli that would have out competed the S. cerevisae that led to this infection. Sounds very plausible, but it is still very unlikely that the brewer's yeast made it past the acid rich stomach. How else could an infection get to the intestines?
I did notice something else very interesting: the hospital was able to use a breathalyzer on him and found he was way over the limit. However, was that reading really accurate, because he never consumed it orally. I know that there has been a recent problem with underage drinkers finding ways around the breathalyzer. A few of them even aired on "Myth Busters," but there are a few that cannot be detected by a breathalyzer, shown in this news article: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/shocking-ways-kids-drunk/story?id=17281602.
What I would like to know is what the doctor prescribed him. Anti-fungals are extremely precarious, and if the antibiotic theory is true, then he is already having digestive problems. Will he just have to stay away from all of the starches?
I will need to fix the first link. Right now, I'm at the SACNAS conference.
ReplyDeleteThis is precisely the sort of story that an author like Mary Roach or Nancy Butcher would include in their books on weird science topics. Alongside other diseases like maple syrup urine disease and the Jumping Frenchmen of Maine disorder, Auto-Brewery Syndrome stands out as another bizarre malady that is often more comical than tragic (although the patient may tend to disagree). The conversion of sugars to ethanol through a yeast population is anything but a rare occurrence in nature, but major-scale manufacture of ethanol in a human being’s gut is another story entirely. The main question that is left unanswered is, How was the yeast population able to thrive within the man’s intestines without being demolished by the immune system? Perhaps if the man had leukopenia, the yeast could have infected his body and experienced very little auto-immune resistance. Although the antibiotics could have also paved a way for the yeast to infiltrate the man’s system, I suspect he either had some kind of immune disorder, or his body left the yeast unmolested because it was busy fighting an aggressive bacterial infection. Rising levels of ethanol in the blood can lead to blood toxicity and is life-threatening, so this is definitely a condition that must be treated promptly.
ReplyDeleteAccording to an ABC report, people can get very creative when it comes to consuming alcohol. The most common alternative method (other than oral ingestion) is anal absorption, but more torturous methods (such as vaginal absorption, “eyeshots,” and imbibing liquid hand sanitizer) are also common among under-age drinkers. (Needless to say, these alternative binging methods do not belong in the “fine-wine” or “taste-testing” categories.) These methods are used in the hopes that the smell of the highly volatile alcohol will not be detected. If parents were allowed to introduce alcoholic beverages to their children at an earlier age (as in most other countries), perhaps children could learn how to avoid abuse and irresponsibility when it comes to drinking.
Decidedly not "fine-wine" tasting....
DeleteI found it quite disheartening that this man was initially turned away and labeled a closet drunk. It is important to note that the patient did not help himself by being a known drunkard. The real inspirations in this article are the two doctors that isolated the true cause of this man’s symptoms. They helped save the patient’s physical and social life. Overall, this was a quite fascinating case from a medical perspective. The unintentional side effects of antibiotics are strange and increasingly abundant. It is intriguing that a host of bacteria can live inside our digestive tracts when there is a vacancy due to antibiotics. Auto-brewing syndrome is a rare and serious disorder. The patient in the article could have easily crashed his car or been arrested for drunk driving. I highly doubt the police would have believed that the man had not consumed alcohol that day. Left untreated this disorder could have caused short to long term liver damage or alcohol poisoning. I believe this story emphasizes the importance of understanding rare diseases. Doctors must be able to diagnose and treat patients with rare diseases and not let them slip through the cracks. Unfortunately, medical researchers are encouraged to study diseases that affect large numbers of people. Rare diseases rarely receive enough funding and suffer from a lack interest from researchers.
ReplyDeleteI found this to be once again another incredible article to read. One thing that can really be taken away from reading this article is that as someone who desires to have a career in the medical field it is important to really pay attention to what a patient is saying. Had those doctors not had interest in the mans condition he would have been simply known as a drunk. Something that I found very interesting was the mention of similar cases that were found and the main cause for the syndrome was because of the bacteria in the gut being wiped out. It just goes to show another reason as to why the bacteria in the gut are so important. Beyond that I think it is a testament to how detailed God was in creating us and planning perfectly how life functions.
ReplyDeleteI can't tell if the patient would appreciate this or not, especially with a history of enjoying alcohol. I find myself continuously awe struck by all of the different "mishaps" that can happen in the body. As previously stated, this is one of those cases that takes a talented team to trust the patient and continue to pursue his case even though it seems he had been voluntarily under the influence of alcohol. I wonder if the longterm effects would be just as detrimental as alcoholism. This just proves that nothing can be taken lightly and there is something new to learn every day!
ReplyDeleteI find it intriguing that there have been journals tracing back to 1948, concerning Auto Brewery-Syndrome. Japan especially had many cases concerning this disease. While reading this article I found it interesting that the man displayed signs of public drunkenness and no one could have imagined medical testings results. While he was an older gentleman, I can see the high-carb diet as a lifelong trend resulting in a longer exposure to the effects of Auto-Brewery Syndrome. With further examination one could see the range of consequences associated with prolonged exposure to excess alcohol. (Child in Africa, Explosion of stomach from high carb intake) I thought perhaps the disease was subject to adults, but another interesting article I found named a 13 year old girl as another victim of disease. After drug and alcohol rehabilitation she still had manic episodes. Eventually, it was discovered that she was creating excess amounts of alcohol in her digestive tract. Treatments of anti-fungal medications have aided her in her overall recovery process, but there is no cure. Also, with anti-bacterial medications, there may be overgrowth with yeast. So the balance between slowing down both is a tight rope. I cannot even begin to imagine the physical as well as the emotional trauma this disease is causing. Hopefully with changes in his diet as well as the aide of medication, his disease can be controlled. However, the change in his diet may be difficult, because he is a Texan and barbecue practically runs through their veins.
ReplyDeleteThis was one intriguing article. The whole idea of the auto-brewery syndrome must have shocked the man's doctors. Nonetheless, it is an amazing story. I think it is easy to see that we all agree that if those doctors weren't so open minded, then this could have been a sad story. S. cerevisiae do more than we thought they did. I think they should put out a study on this in order to find out how susceptible anyone can be to an infection. This man was only drunk, but if it was left alone, the infection could have been fatal, and who knows, it could be more rapid in others who have a worse eating habits. This infection could be seen more often with obesity on the rise, and fast food chains on the prowl.
ReplyDeleteI think that it is crazy that our bodies can harm themselves more than we could even imagine. If I was this man's doctor, I would have never even considered this as a possibility. This is truly a horrifying syndrome for this man and anyone else who may obtain it; it can cause so much harm to the body. Now when I think of "beer belly," it will have a whole new meaning.
ReplyDeleteWow this is definitely shocking. It really does look like he has a beer gut. I cannot imagine how self conscious he must have felt. Thankfully, it only acted up due to his diet. This article reminded me of a short film that one of my professors showed me. A teenager wanted a baby so bad that when she was awake she looked pregnant. They gave her anastetic and her stomach went back to normal. She woke up and she looked pregnant again. The human body and mind never cease to amaze me.
ReplyDeleteI found this article humorous. I had read somewhere in the past that this condition was possible, and that certain individuals could become inebriated without the consumption of alcohol. However, after reading this article it makes sense how this can actually occur. One question is does everyone actually produce some alcohol in their intestines from Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S. cerevisiae), or does everyone not possess this bacteria. It seems to me that if everyone has amounts of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S. cerevisiae), then discovering that alcohol can be produced would not be so shocking. We would have known that at least trace amounts of alcohol were present in the gut of those who possess this bacteria. So this must be a unique case where this individual had contracted this bacteria. He definitely gives a literal meaning to the term, beer belly.
ReplyDeleteI really find case studies like this extremely interesting even though they aren't usually accepted in the science world as credible evidence. They make me stop to think about all the things I don't know about the human body, and all the personal things people go through in their lives. I can't imagine how many times this poor old man tried to convince his wife, kids, and church family that he wasn't drunk or hadn't been drinking and people had laughed at him or called him senile. It must have been a difficult thing to face when even his own wife bought herself a breathalyzer (talk about having no one in your corner). He must have thought he was going crazy, even though he was completely sane and I can't imagine the relief he must have felt when the doctors finally solved the mystery. Personally, I would be interested in learning more about this auto-brewery syndrome. Do other microorganisms and fungi apart from S. cerevisiae thrive in this manner in the intestines? If so, are there ways we can use this phenomenon to make drugs that work similar to prodrugs? By looking at the high alcohol content recovered after just one meal, I wonder if in medicinal chemistry these microorganisms could be used to increase the uptake of certain prodrugs in selective tissue by metabolizing inert compounds into active ones in large quantities. I would definitely like to learn more about this case and others like it and see what research can be done in these areas.
ReplyDeleteI guess possibilities are always endless! Such a happening makes you realize that anything is possible. It is interesting to note that the S. cerevisiae could be considered a parasitic organism when its presence in the gut can lead to such conditions. I would like to find out how many individuals claim this occurrence when caught for doing something unlawful. It seems that the only way one would truly be able to find out is by taking some kind of microbial culture in order to identify and account for the amount of the S. cerevisiae is present.
ReplyDeleteI guess this condition would save the alcoholics a decent amount of cash! On the bad side if this guy is drunk all the time he probably has problems with his occupation and his family. On the brighter side of things the condition forces this gentleman to go on a really low carbohydrate diet so maybe he will get a six pack of abs out of the deal. This must be a rare case because I have never heard of anything like this before.
ReplyDeleteI found this article to be interesting and humorous, I had no idea that this was possible. It's amazing what our bodies can do with what we provide it with, without us even knowing. I'm constantly amazed about what our diet can do for us and against us.
ReplyDelete