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©The Author(s) 2025. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Psychiatry. Oct 19, 2025; 15(10): 107936
Published online Oct 19, 2025. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v15.i10.107936
Published online Oct 19, 2025. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v15.i10.107936
Glymphatic system dysfunction in alcohol use disorder: Current understanding and future directions
Jia-Yu Lin, Ling Luo, Ren-Jie Li, Xiao-Guang Wang, Forensic Medicine, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong Province, China
Jia-Yu Lin, Basic Medicine, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong Province, China
Hai-Bo Zhang, Department of Radiology, The Third Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Zhongshan 528400, Guangdong Province, China
Xiao-Guang Wang, Guangdong Province Translational Forensic Medicine Engineering Technology Research Center, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong Province, China
Xiao-Guang Wang, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Disease, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong Province, China
Co-first authors: Jia-Yu Lin and Hai-Bo Zhang.
Author contributions: Lin JY and Zhang HB contributed to writing the original draft and made equal contributions as co-first authors; Lin JY, Zhang HB, Luo L, Li RJ, and Wang XG contributed to the review and editing; Wang XG contributed to conceptualization and supervision; All authors approved the final version to publish.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Xiao-Guang Wang, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Forensic Medicine, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, No. 74 Zhongshan 2nd Road, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong Province, China. wxguang@mail.sysu.edu.cn
Received: April 2, 2025
Revised: May 7, 2025
Accepted: July 23, 2025
Published online: October 19, 2025
Processing time: 178 Days and 19.7 Hours
Revised: May 7, 2025
Accepted: July 23, 2025
Published online: October 19, 2025
Processing time: 178 Days and 19.7 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: The glymphatic system, a critical pathway for fluid exchange and waste clearance in the brain, is linked to neurological disorders when dysfunctional. Alcohol has a biphasic effect: Low doses enhance glymphatic function, while high doses suppress it and cause cognitive decline, mirroring alcohol-related dementia. Studies explore how alcohol affects cerebrospinal fluid-interstitial fluid exchange and waste removal. Despite progress, gaps remain in understanding mechanisms and confounding factors like sex, age, and blood pressure. The significance of this review lies in deepening the understanding of the relationship between alcohol and glymphatic system disorders and offering possible targets for developing new treatments.