Is the iron regulatory hormone hepcidin a risk factor for alcoholic liver disease?

Figure 2 Hepcidin and alcohol. Alcohol is metabolized by alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and cytochrome P4502E1 (CYP2E1) in the liver. Alcohol-induced oxidative stress leads to the suppression of hepcidin promoter activity and hepcidin transcription in the liver. The parenchymal, but not the non-parenchymal cells of the liver are involved in the regulation of hepcidin transcription by alcohol-induced oxidative stress. The activation of CYP2E1 or NADPH oxidase and changes in mitochondrial functions are involved in alcohol-induced oxidative stress in hepatocytes. The role of these pathways in the regulation of hepcidin transcription by alcohol requires further investigation.