Effect of Specimen Anticoagulant and Storage on Measurement of Serum and Plasma Fatty Acid Ethyl Ester Concentrations.

Abstract

Fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEEs) are cytotoxic nonoxidative metabolites of ethanol that are produced by esterification of alcohol and fatty acids (1)(2)(3). After ethanol intake, FAEEs are found mainly in the liver, pancreas, heart, and brain, which are the major organs adversely affected by ethanol intake (4)(5). FAEEs are detectable in the blood for up to 24 h after consumption of ethanol to at least 600 mg/L (6)(7)(8), making the presence of FAEEs in blood a useful marker for ethanol intake. This investigation presents the results of studies on the effects of collection tube, storage time, and storage temperature on FAEE concentrations in blood, with the goal of creating a reliable clinical assay for serum and plasma FAEE quantification. Four volunteers participated in this study. Each subject was given a weight-adjusted amount of 100-proof vodka mixed with fruit juice in a 1:3 ratio (8). The vodka-juice beverage was divided into nine equal aliquots, which were administered every 10 min over a 90-min time period. After the last aliquot was drunk, blood samples were collected in four different 5-mL Vacutainer Tubes from each subject to assess the influence of the collection tube …