The Alcohol Dehydrogenase System

Alcohol dehydrogenases of different types are common enzymes in nature. Two of these families, the medium-chain dehydrogenase/reductase family, MDR, and the shortchain dehydrogenase/reductase family, SDR, are well studied and known since long, but have experienced a recent “explosion” of new knowledge, extension and importance. The MDR family includes the classical zinc-containing liver alcohol dehydrogenases encompassing the classes of human liver alcohol dehydrogenase, while the SDR family includes the Drosophila alcohol dehydrogenase, which has shorter subunits, no similar metal requirements, other sub-domain arrangements with different structural relationships, and other subunit interactions.