Kupffer cells have been implicated in mechanisms of pathophysiology following liver transplantation. Recently, postoperative injury in ethanol-induced fatty liver has been evaluated because fatty livers often fail following transplantation. The low-flow, reflow liver perfusion model was used to study the role of Kupffer cells (KC) in reperfusion injury to fatty livers from rats fed a diet containing ethanol for 4-5 weeks. Treatment with GdCl3, which selectively destroys KC, decreased cell death significantly. Thus, destruction of KC minimized hepatic reperfusion injury, most likely by inhibiting free radical formation and improving microcirculation. Since it was demonstrated recently that destruction of KC prevented the hypermetabolic state observed with acute alcohol exposure, their involvement in events leading to alcohol-induced liver disease was investigated. In rats exposed to ethanol continuously via intragastric feeding for up to 4 weeks, GdCl3 treatment prevented elevation of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and dramatically reduced the average hepatic pathological score. These results indicate that KC participate in the early phases of alcohol-induced liver injury. Endotoxaemia occurs in alcoholics and activates KC; therefore, we evaluated the effect of minimizing bacterial endotoxin by intestinal sterilization with the antibiotics polymyxin B and neomycin. Antibiotics diminished plasma endotoxin levels significantly and prevented ethanol-induced increases in AST values. These results indicate that endotoxin is involved in the mechanism of ethanol-induced liver injury. A six-line radical spectrum was detected with electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy in bile from alcohol-treated rats which was blocked by GdCl3. The free radical adducts had hyperfine coupling constants characteristic of lipid-derived free radical products. In conclusion, these studies demonstrate that KC are involved in reperfusion injury to ethanol-induced fatty livers and hepatic injury due to long-term treatment with ethanol.