The occurrence of “blackouts” in which complex activities are performed with no recollection of the behavior available may be a related phenomenon and perhaps a biomarker for the mechanism of neurotoxicity observed in binge drinkers. Blackouts occur often in binge drinkers and could originate from reduced activity of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors in the hippocampus, which would impair long-term potentiation (Izumi, Nagashima, Murayama, & Zorumski, 2005; for a review, see Allgaier, 2002). Excessive glucocorticoid release induced by the withdrawal stress could intensify the responses of already overactive NMDA receptors, thereby initiating blackouts (Hunt, 1993). Periods of binging followed by abstinence then trigger a neural cycle that leads to increased neurotoxicity of structures involved in learning and memory.
