PGICH Noida NO-2025
Biochemistry and Nutrition
Easy
Which of the following is a marker of heavy alcohol drinking and can help monitor patients for progress towards abstinence?
Appeared in: PGICH Noida NO-2025
Explanation
- Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT) is a highly specific biomarker for identifying chronic, heavy alcohol consumption.
- Alcohol interferes with the normal process of glycosylation (attaching sugar molecules to proteins) in the liver. This results in an increased level of transferrin protein that lacks its full carbohydrate component.
- CDT has a half-life of about 16 days, meaning its levels reflect alcohol intake over the preceding 2-3 weeks.
- Because CDT levels decrease and normalize with sustained abstinence, it is an effective tool for objectively monitoring a patient's progress in recovery.
Why Other Options Were Wrong
- Option A: This enzyme, part of the RuBisCO complex, is involved in photorespiration in plants and has no physiological role in the human body.
- Option B: This enzyme, also part of RuBisCO, is the primary enzyme for carbon fixation during photosynthesis in plants. It is not found or used in human metabolic pathways.
- Option C: Acetylcholinesterase is an enzyme that breaks down the neurotransmitter acetylcholine at nerve synapses. It is unrelated to alcohol metabolism.
Related Visual
Clinical Relevance
- Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Biomarkers for chronic alcohol consumption as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
- Nurses play a key role in patient education, explaining the purpose of CDT testing and interpreting the results in a non-judgmental way to support recovery.
- Monitoring CDT levels provides objective feedback that can motivate patients and help the healthcare team assess the effectiveness of the treatment plan for alcohol use disorder.
- What if? A patient reports abstinence, but their CDT level remains high? This prompts a compassionate conversation to explore potential hidden relapses, reinforces the need for stronger support systems, and rules out rare medical conditions that can also affect CDT levels.
How to Approach the Question
- First, identify the core of the question: it asks for a specific laboratory marker for two things: 'heavy alcohol drinking' and 'monitoring abstinence'.
- Analyze the options. Options A and B mention 'Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate', which is part of the RuBisCO enzyme complex. Recall from basic biology that RuBisCO is central to photosynthesis in plants. This makes them highly unlikely to be relevant to human alcohol metabolism.
- Consider Option C, 'Acetylcholinesterase'. Recall that this enzyme is related to neurotransmitters (acetylcholine) and the nervous system. While alcohol affects the brain, this specific enzyme is not a primary marker for consumption.
- Evaluate Option D, 'Carbohydrate deficient transferrin'. The name itself suggests a link to a metabolic process (carbohydrates) and a specific protein (transferrin). This is a known, specific biomarker for chronic alcohol use.
- Conclude that CDT is the only option that fits the criteria of being a specific marker for chronic alcohol use with a half-life suitable for monitoring abstinence over weeks.
Concept Tested & Keywords
- Concept Tested: Biomarkers for chronic alcohol consumption
- Stem keywords: marker, heavy alcohol drinking, monitor, abstinence
- Lead-in keywords: Which of the following
Question ID
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Reference Book
E6 Robert Boland, Marcia L. Verduin - Kaplan and Sadock's Comprehensive Text of Psychiatry-Wolters Kluwer Health (2024) (pp 1-16525 of 16525) pp. 4242-4244, 4238-4240
E6 Kaplan Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry-2022 (pp 1-3768 of 3768) p. 901-903
Practise the full PGICH Noida NO-2025
Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.
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