InterPro domain: IPR001670

Alcohol dehydrogenase ( 1.1.1.1 ) (ADH) catalyses the reversible oxidation of ethanol to acetaldehyde with the concomitant reduction of NAD. Currently three, structurally and catalytically, different types of alcohol dehydrogenases are known:

• Zinc-containing 'long-chain' alcohol dehydrogenases.
• Insect-type, or 'short-chain' alcohol dehydrogenases.
• Iron-containing alcohol dehydrogenases.

Iron-containing ADH's have been found in yeast (gene ADH4) [ 1 ], as well as in Zymomonas mobilis (gene adhB) [ 2 ]. These two iron-containing ADH's are closely related to the following enzymes:

• Escherichia coli lactaldehyde reductase (also known as propanediol oxidoreductase) ( 1.1.1.77 ) (gene fucO) [ 3 ], an enzyme involved in the metabolism of fucose and which also seems to contain ferrous ion(s).
• Clostridium acetobutylicum NADPH- and NADH-dependent butanol dehydrogenases ( 1.1.1 ) (genes adh1, bdhA and bdhB) [ 4 ], an enzyme which has activity using butanol and ethanol as substrates.
• E. coli aldehyde-alcohol dehydrogenase (AdhE) [ 5 ], an iron-dependent enzyme which harbor three different activities: alcohol dehydrogenase, acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (acetylating) ( 1.2.1.10 ) and pyruvate-formate-lyase deactivase.
• Bacterial glycerol dehydrogenase ( 1.1.1.6 ) (gene gldA or dhaD) [ 6 ].
• Clostridium kluyveri NAD-dependent 4-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (4hbd) ( 1.1.1.61 ).
• Citrobacter freundii and Klebsiella pneumoniae 1,3-propanediol dehydrogenase ( 1.1.1.202 ) (gene dhaT).
• Bacillus methanolicus NAD-dependent methanol dehydrogenase ( 1.1.1.244 ) [ 7 ].
• E. coli and Salmonella typhimurium ethanolamine utilization protein eutG.
• E. coli hypothetical protein yiaY.

1. Cloning and sequencing of the alcohol dehydrogenase II gene from Zymomonas mobilis. J. Bacteriol. 169, 2591-7
2. Homology of Saccharomyces cerevisiae ADH4 to an iron-activated alcohol dehydrogenase from Zymomonas mobilis. Mol. Gen. Genet. 209, 374-81
3. Similarity of Escherichia coli propanediol oxidoreductase (fucO product) and an unusual alcohol dehydrogenase from Zymomonas mobilis and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. J. Bacteriol. 171, 3754-9
4. Molecular characterization of two Clostridium acetobutylicum ATCC 824 butanol dehydrogenase isozyme genes. J. Bacteriol. 174, 7149-58
5. Pyruvate-formate-lyase-deactivase and acetyl-CoA reductase activities of Escherichia coli reside on a polymeric protein particle encoded by adhE. FEBS Lett. 281, 59-63
6. Mapping and cloning of gldA, the structural gene of the Escherichia coli glycerol dehydrogenase. J. Bacteriol. 176, 1796-800
7. Cloning, expression, and sequence analysis of the Bacillus methanolicus C1 methanol dehydrogenase gene. J. Bacteriol. 174, 5346-53