ALDH2

Aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 family (mitochondrial), also known as ALDH2, is a human is_associated_with::gene found on is_associated_with::chromosome 12.

Function
The is_associated_with::enzyme encoded by this gene belongs to the is_associated_with::aldehyde dehydrogenase family of enzymes that catalyze the chemical transformation from is_associated_with::acetaldehyde to is_associated_with::acetic acid. Aldehyde dehydrogenase is the second enzyme of the major oxidative pathway of alcohol metabolism.

Isoforms
Two major liver is_associated_with::isoforms of this enzyme, is_associated_with::cytosolic and mitochondrial, can be distinguished by their electrophoretic mobilities, kinetic properties, and subcellular localizations. The ALDH2 gene encodes a mitochondrial isoform, which has a low Km for is_associated_with::acetaldehydes, and is localized in mitochondrial matrix; in contrast the ALDH1 gene codes for the cytosolic isoform.

Clinical significance
Most Europeans have two major isozymes, while approximately 50% of Northeast Asians have one normal copy of the ALDH2 gene and one mutant copy that encodes an inactive mitochondrial isoenzyme. A remarkably higher frequency of acute alcohol intoxication among Northeast Asians than among Europeans has been repeatedly shown to be related to the very much reduced activity of the mutant ALDH2-2 isoenzyme. During the 80's there has been a steady increase in the number of Japanese alcoholics who manage to overcome their genetically determined aversion to is_associated_with::alcoholism from the dominant effects of an ALDH2-2 mutation. This trend demonstrates that, even among those least likely to succumb to alcoholism, there are social pressures to drink.

An activator of ALDH2 enzymatic activity, Alda-1 (N-(1,3-benzodioxol-5-ylmethyl)-2,6-dichlorobenzamide), has been shown to reduce is_associated_with::ischemia-induced cardiac damage caused by is_associated_with::myocardial infarction.

Interactions
ALDH2 has been shown to interact with is_associated_with::GroEL.