A study of the kinetics and mechanism of yeast alcohol dehydrogenase with a variety of substrates

1. The kinetics of oxidation of ethanol, propan-1-ol, butan-1-ol and propan-2-ol by NAD(+) and of reduction of acetaldehyde and butyraldehyde by NADH catalysed by yeast alcohol dehydrogenase were studied. 2. Results for the aldehyde-NADH reactions are consistent with a compulsory-order mechanism with the rate-limiting step being the dissociation of the product enzyme-NAD(+) complex. In contrast the results for the alcohol-NAD(+) reactions indicate that some dissociation of coenzyme from the active enzyme-NAD(+)-alcohol ternary complexes must occur and that the mechanism is not strictly compulsory-order. The rate-limiting step in ethanol oxidation is the dissociation of the product enzyme-NADH complex but with the other alcohols it is probably the catalytic interconversion of ternary complexes. 3. The rate constants describing the combination of NAD(+) and NADH with the enzyme and the dissociations of these coenzymes from binary complexes with the enzyme were measured.     

A study of the oxidation of butan-1-ol and propan-2-ol by nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide catalysed by yeast alcohol dehydrogenase.

1. The kinetics of oxidation of butan-1-ol and propan-2-ol by NAD+, catalysed by yeast alcohol dehydrogenase, were studied at 25 degrees C from pH 5.5 to 10, and at pH 7.05 from 14 degrees to 44 degrees C, 2. Under all conditions studied the results are consistent with a mechanism whereby some dissociation of coenzyme from the active enzyme-NAD+-alcohol ternary complexes occurs, and the mechanism is therefore not strictly compulsory order. 3. A primary 2H isotopic effect on the maximum rates of oxidation of [1-2H2]butan-1-ol and [2H7]propan-2-ol was found at 25 degrees C over the pH range 5.5-10. Further, in stopped-flow experiments at pH 7.05 and 25 degrees C, there was no transient formation of NADH in the oxidation of butan-1-ol and propan-2-ol. The principal rate-limiting step in the oxidation of dependence on pH of the maximum rates of oxidation of butan-1-ol and propan-2-ol is consisten with the possibility that histidine and cysteine residues may affect or control catalysis.     

Estimation of rate dissociation constants involving ternary complexes in reactions catalysed by yeast alcohol dehydrogenase

Stopped-flow studies of oxidation of butan-1-ol and propan-2-ol by NAD(+) in the presence of Phenol Red and large concentrations of yeast alcohol dehydrogenase give no evidence for the participation of a group of pK(a) approx. 7.6 in alcohol binding. Such a group has been implicated in ethanol binding to horse liver alcohol dehydrogenase [Shore, Gutfreund, Brooks, Santiago & Santiago (1974) Biochemistry13, 4185-4190]. The present result supports previous findings based on steady-state kinetic studies with the yeast enzyme. Stopped-flow studies of the yeast alcohol dehydrogenase-catalysed reduction of acetaldehyde by NADH in the presence of ethanol as product inhibitor indicate that the rate-limiting step is NAD(+) release from the enzyme-NAD(+)-ethanol product complex. This finding permits calculation of K(3), the dissociation constant for ethanol from the enzyme-NAD(+)-ethanol complex, by using the product-inhibition data of Dickenson & Dickinson (1978) (Biochem. J.171, 613-627). The calculations show that K(3) varies very little with pH in the range 5.95-8.9, and this agrees with the findings of the stopped-flow experiments described above. Absorption and fluorescence measurements on mixtures of substrates and coenzymes in the presence of high concentrations of alcohol dehydrogenase have been used to estimate values for the ratio [enzyme-NADH-acetaldehyde]/ [enzyme-NAD(+)-ethanol] at equilibrium. The values obtained were in the range 0.11+/-0.04, and this value together with estimates of K(3) was used to provide estimates of values for rate constants and dissociation constants for steps within the catalytic mechanism.     

Drosophila lebanonensis alcohol dehydrogenase: pH dependence of the kinetic coefficients

The alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) from Drosophila lebanonensis shows 82% positional identity to the alcohol dehydrogenases from Drosophila melanogaster. These insect ADHs belong to the short-chain dehydrogenase/reductase family which lack metal ions in their active site. In this family, it appears that the function of zinc in medium chain dehydrogenases has been replaced by three amino acids, Ser138, Tyr151 and Lys155. The present work on D. lebanonensis ADH has been performed in order to obtain information about reaction mechanism, and possible differences in topology and electrostatic properties in the vicinity of the catalytic residues in ADHs from various species of Drosophila. Thus the pH dependence of various kinetic coefficients has been studied. Both in the oxidation of alcohols and in the reduction of aldehydes, the reaction mechanism of D. lebanonensis ADH in the pH 6-10 region was consistent with a compulsory ordered pathway, with the coenzymes as the outer substrates. Over the entire pH region, the rate limiting step for the oxidation of secondary alcohols such as propan-2-ol was the release of the coenzyme product from the enzyme-NADH complex. In the oxidation of ethanol at least two steps were rate limiting, the hydride transfer step and the dissociation of NADH from the binary enzyme-NADH product complex. In the reduction of acetaldehyde, the rate limiting step was the dissociation of NAD+ from the binary enzyme-NAD+ product complex. The pH dependences of the kon velocity curves for the two coenzymes were the opposite of each other, i.e. kon increased for NAD+ and decreased for NADH with increasing pH. The two curves appeared complex and the kon velocity for the two coenzymes seemed to be regulated by several groups in the free enzyme. The kon velocity for ethanol and the ethanol competitive inhibitor pyrazole increased with pH and was regulated through the ionization of a single group in the binary enzyme-NAD+ complex, with a pKa value of 7.1. The kon velocity for acetaldehyde was pH independent and showed that in the enzyme-NADH complex, the pKa value of the catalytic residue must be above 10. The koff velocity of NAD+ appeared to be partly regulated by the catalytic residue, and protonation resulted in an increased dissociation rate. The koff velocity for NADH and the hydride transfer step was pH independent. In D. lebanonensis ADH, the pKa value of the catalytic residue was 0.5 pH units lower than in the ADHS alleloenzyme from D. melanogaster. Thus it can be concluded that while most of the topology of the active site is mainly conserved in these two distantly related enzymes, the microenvironment and electrostatic properties around the catalytic residues differ.     

The AdhS alleloenzyme of alcohol dehydrogenase from Drosophila melanogaster. Variation of kinetic parameters with pH.

The variation with pH of the kinetic parameters for the alcohol and acetaldehyde reactions were studied for the alleloenzyme AdhS from Drosophila melanogaster. The variation of Ki (KEO,I) with pH for two ethanol-competitive inhibitors, pyrazole and 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol, was also studied. Both alcohol oxidation and acetaldehyde reduction follow a compulsory ordered pathway, with coenzyme binding first. The rate-limiting step for ethanol oxidation is complex and involves at least hydride transfer and dissociation of the enzyme-NADH complex (ER). In contrast with this, the rate-limiting step for the back reaction, i.e. the reduction of acetaldehyde, is dissociation of the enzyme-NAD+ complex (EO). A rate-limiting ER dissociation appears in the oxidation of the secondary alcohol propan-2-ol, whereas for the back reaction, i.e. acetone reduction, hydride transfer in the ternary complexes is rate-limiting. There is one group in the free enzyme, with a pK of approx. 8.0, that regulates the kon velocity for NADH, whereas for NAD+ several groups seem to be involved. A group in the enzyme is drastically perturbed by the formation of the binary EO complex. Protonation of this group with a pK of 7.6 in the EO complex resulted in weakened alcohol and inhibitor binding, in addition to an increased dissociation rate of NAD+ from the binary EO complex. Neither the binding of acetaldehyde nor the dissociation rate of NADH from the binary ER complex varied within the pH region studied.     

The enthalpy change for the reduction of nicotinamide–adenine dinucleotide

The heat of the reaction NAD(+)+propan-2-ol=NADH+acetone+H(+) was determined to be 42.5+/-0.6kJ/mol (10.17+/-0.15kcal/mol) from equilibrium measurements at 9-42 degrees C catalysed by yeast alcohol dehydrogenase. With the aid of thermochemical data for acetone and propan-2-ol the values of DeltaH=-29.2kJ/mol (-6.99kcal/mol) and DeltaG(0)=22.1kJ/mol (5.28kcal/mol) are derived for the reduction of NAD (NAD(+)+H(2)=NADH+H(+)). These values are consistent with analogous but less accurate data for the ethanol-acetaldehyde reaction. Thermodynamic data for the reduction of NAD and NADP are summarized.     

Cloning and characterization of the gene for a methanol-utilising alcohol dehydrogenase from Bacillus stearothermophilus

The cloning and characterization of the alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) gene (adh) from Bacillus stearothermophilus strain DSM2334, an obligate aerobe, are described. The clone directed the synthesis of ADH as judged on Western blots, activity gels and tetrazolium plates. It specified an enzyme that oxidised methanol as well as ethanol. The enzyme was found to be encoded by a single gene in B. stearothermophilus which did not cross-hybridize to adh clones from Escherichia coli, yeast or maize. The cloned gene was expressed in E. coli but activity was not detected in Bacillus subtilis, despite stable maintenance of the recombinant plasmid in this host. The gene is catabolite-repressed in DSM2334.     

The kinetics and mechanism of liver alcohol dehydrogenase with primary and secondary alcohols as substrates

1. The activity of liver alcohol dehydrogenase with propan-2-ol and butan-2-ol has been confirmed. The activity with the corresponding ketones is small. Initial-rate parameters are reported for the oxidation of these secondary alcohols, and of propan-1-ol and 2-methylpropan-1-ol, and for the reduction of propionaldehyde and 2-methylpropionaldehyde. Substrate inhibition with primary alcohols is also described. 2. The requirements of the Theorell-Chance mechanism are satisfied by the data for all the primary alcohols and aldehydes, but not by the data for the secondary alcohols. A mechanism that provides for dissociation of either coenzyme or substrate from the reactive ternary complex is described, and shown to account for the initial-rate data for both primary and secondary alcohols, and for isotope-exchange results for the former. With primary alcohols, the rapid rate of reaction of the ternary complex, and its small steady-state concentration, result in conformity of initial-rate data to the requirements of the Theorell-Chance mechanisms. With secondary alcohols, the ternary complex reacts more slowly, its steady-state concentration is greater, and therefore dissociation of coenzyme from it is rate-limiting with non-saturating coenzyme concentrations. 3. Substrate inhibition with large concentrations of primary alcohols is attributed to the formation of an abortive complex of enzyme, NADH and alcohol from which NADH dissociates more slowly than from the enzyme-NADH complex. The initial-rate equation is derived for the complete mechanism, which includes a binary enzyme-alcohol complex and alternative pathways for formation of the reactive ternary complex. This mechanism would also provide, under suitable conditions, for substrate activation or substrate inhibition in a two-substrate reaction, according to the relative rates of reaction through the two pathways.     

Sex differences, alcohol dehydrogenase, acetaldehyde burst, and aversion to ethanol in the rat: a systems perspective

Individuals who carry the most active alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) isoforms are protected against alcoholism. This work addresses the mechanism by which a high ADH activity leads to low ethanol intake in animals. Male and female ethanol drinker rats (UChB) were allowed access to 10% ethanol for 1 h. Females showed 70% higher hepatic ADH activity and displayed 60% lower voluntary ethanol intake than males. Following ethanol administration (1 g/kg ip), females generated a transient blood acetaldehyde increase ("burst") with levels that were 2.5-fold greater than in males (P < 0.02). Castration of males led to 1) an increased ADH activity (+50%, P < 0.001), 2) the appearance of an acetaldehyde burst (3- to 4-fold vs. sham), and 3) a reduction of voluntary ethanol intake comparable with that of na?ve females. The ADH inhibitor 4-methylpyrazole blocked the appearance of arterial acetaldehyde and increased ethanol intake. Since the release of NADH from the ADH.NADH complex constitutes the rate-limiting step of ADH (but not of ALDH2) activity, endogenous NADH oxidizing substrates present at the time of ethanol intake may contribute to the acetaldehyde burst. Sodium pyruvate given at the time of ethanol administration led to an abrupt acetaldehyde burst and a greatly reduced voluntary ethanol intake. Overall, a transient surge of arterial acetaldehyde occurs upon ethanol administration due to 1) high ADH levels and 2) available metabolites that can oxidize hepatic NADH. The acetaldehyde burst is strongly associated with a marked reduction in ethanol intake.     

A MULTILEVEL APPROACH TO THE SIGNIFICANCE OF GENETIC VARIATION IN ALCOHOL DEHYDROGENASE OF DROSOPHILA

Prior studies showed that differences in alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) activity across genotypes of Drosophila are decisive for the outcome of selection by ethanol. In the present paper, the effect on ADH activity and egg-to-adult survival of combinations of ethanol, propan-2-ol, and acetone in naturally occurring concentrations is examined. Propan-2-ol is converted into acetone by ADH in vitro. Acetone is considered a competitive inhibitor of ethanol for the ADH enzymes. The melanogaster-ADH-S allozyme is two times more sensitive towards inhibition by acetone than either simulans-ADH or melanogaster-ADH-F. The physiological implications of these in vitro differences for larvae were studied in short-term in vivo and long-term exposure experiments. No major differences in acetone accumulation or fitness parameters were found between the strains in response to ecologically relevant concentrations of acetone or propan-2-ol. Ethanol, however, strongly decreased egg-to-pupal survival in both Drosophila simulans strains and increased developmental time in four out of the five strains tested. Therefore, under physiological conditions only ethanol was shown to act as a selective agent on the ADH polymorphism during egg-to-pupa development in Drosophila.     

The effect of alcohol stress on nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) levels in Drosophila

Previous studies carried out in mammalian systems indicated that an organism's NAD+/NADH balance is carefully regulated but can be destabilized by dietary stresses. Since Drosophila alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) uses NAD+ to remove a hydrogen from ethanol in the first step of alcohol catabolism, it is possible that under alcohol stress conditions the in vivo NAD+ levels in Drosophila may decrease. In this study genetically homozygous flies were stressed with maximally sublethal concentrations of ethanol (10%) for periods of up to 24 hr. The results indicate that NAD+ levels do in fact drop by at least 20% in response to ethanol stress. Evidence is presented that suggests that this decrease is the direct result of ADH-mediated catabolism.     

Alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) in yeasts. II. NAD+-and NADP+-dependent alcohol dehydrogenases in Saccharomycopsis lipolytica.

In Sm. lipolytica one NAD+-dependent and three NADP+-dependent alcohol dehydrogenases are detectable by polyacrylamide gelelectrophoresis. The NAD+-dependent ADH (ADH I), with a molecular weight of 240,000 daltons, reacts more intensively with long-chain alcohols (octanol) than with short-chain alcohols (methanol, ethanol). The ADH I is not or only minimally subject to glucose repression. Besides the ADH I band no additional inducible NAD+-dependent ADH band is gel-electrophoretically detectable during growth of yeast cells in medium containing ethanol or paraffin. The ADH I band is very probably formed by two ADH enzymes with the same electrophoretic mobility. The NADP+-dependent alcohol dehydrogenases (ADH II--IV) react with methanol, ethanol and octanol with different intensity. In polyacrylamide gradients two bands of NADP+-dependent ADH are detectable: one with a molecular weight of 70,000 daltons and the other with 120,000 daltons. The occurrence of the three NADP+-dependent alcohol dehydrogenases is regulated by the carbon source of the medium. Sm. lipolytica shows a high tolerance against allylalcohol. Resistant mutants can be isolated only at concentrations of 1 M allylalcohol in the medium. All isolates of allylalcohol-resistant mutants show identical growth in medium containing ethanol as the wild type strain.     

Fast kinetics analysis of the peroxidatic reaction catalysed by horse liver alcohol dehydrogenase

The kinetics of the enzymatic step of the peroxidatic reaction between NAD and hydrogen peroxide, catalysed by horse liver alcohol dehydrogenase (alcohol:NAD+ oxidoreductase, EC 1.1.1.1), has been investigated at pH 7 at high enzyme concentration. Under such conditions no burst phase has been observed, thus indicating that the rate-limiting step in the process, which converts NAD into Compound I, either precedes or coincides with the chemical step responsible for the observed spectroscopic change. Kinetic analysis of the data, performed according to a simplified reaction scheme suggests that the rate-limiting step is coincident with the spectroscopic (i.e., chemical) step itself. Furthermore, the absence of a proton burst phase indicates the proton release step does not precede the chemical step, in contrast with the case of ethanol oxidation. A kinetic effect of different premixing conditions on the reaction rate has been observed and attributed to the presence of NADH formed in the 'blank reaction' between NAD and residual ethanol tightly bound to alcohol dehydrogenase. A molecular mechanism for the enzymatic peroxidation step is finally proposed, exploiting the knowledge of the much better known reaction of ethanol oxidation. Inhibition of this reaction by NADH has been investigated with respect to H2O2 (noncompetitive, Ki about 10 microM) and to NAD (competitive, Ki about 0.7 microM). The effect of temperature on the steady-state reaction state (about 65 kJ/mol activation energy) has also been studied.     

Influence of water-miscible organic solvents on kinetics and enantioselectivity of the (R)-specific alcohol dehydrogenase from Lactobacillus brevis

Using the organic solvents acetonitrile and 1,4-dioxane as water-miscible additives for the alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH)-catalyzed reduction of butan-2-one, we investigated the influence of the solvents on enzyme reaction behavior and enantioselectivity. The NADP(+)-dependent (R)-selective ADH from Lactobacillus brevis (ADH-LB) was chosen as biocatalyst. For cofactor regeneration, the substrate-coupled approach using propan-2-ol as co-substrate was applied. Acetonitrile and 1,4-dioxane were tested from mole fraction 0.015 up to 0.1. Initial rate experiments revealed a complex kinetic behavior with enzyme activation caused by the substrate butan-2-one, and increasing K(M) values with increasing solvent concentration. Furthermore, these experiments showed an enhancement of the enantioselectivity for (R)-butan-2-ol from 37% enantiomeric excess (ee) in pure phosphate buffer up to 43% ee in the presence of 0.1 mol fraction acetonitrile. Finally, the influence of the co-solvents on water activity of the reaction mixture and on enzyme stability was investigated.     

Functional and biochemical features of alcohol dehydrogenase in four species of the obscura group of Drosophila

The biochemical features of ADH of four Drosophila species of the obscura group have been studied. The relationship between ethanol tolerance and ADH activity has been investigated. Propan-2-ol and acetone concentrations have been determined in propan-2-ol treated flies and ADH activity has been followed during 96 h of propan-2-ol treatment. Data on the ADH system confirm constructed phylogenies based on electrophoretic variation and chromosome homologies.     

Biochemical properties of alcohol dehydrogenase from Drosophila lebanonensis.

Purified Drosophila lebanonensis alcohol dehydrogenase (Adh) revealed one enzymically active zone in starch gel electrophoresis at pH 8.5. This zone was located on the cathode side of the origin. Incubation of D. lebanonensis Adh with NAD+ and acetone altered the electrophoretic pattern to more anodal migrating zones. D. lebanonensis Adh has an Mr of 56,000, a subunit of Mr of 28 000 and is a dimer with two active sites per enzyme molecule. This agrees with a polypeptide chain of 247 residues. Metal analysis by plasma emission spectroscopy indicated that this insect alcohol dehydrogenase is not a metalloenzyme. In studies of the substrate specificity and stereospecificity, D. lebanonensis Adh was more active with secondary than with primary alcohols. Both alkyl groups in the secondary alcohols interacted hydrophobically with the alcohol binding region of the active site. The catalytic centre activity for propan-2-ol was 7.4 s-1 and the maximum velocity of most secondary alcohols was approximately the same and indicative of rate-limiting enzyme-coenzyme dissociation. For primary alcohols the maximum velocity varied and was much lower than for secondary alcohols. The catalytic centre activity for ethanol was 2.4 s-1. With [2H6]ethanol a primary kinetic 2H isotope effect of 2.8 indicated that the interconversion of the ternary complexes was rate-limiting. Pyrazole was an ethanol-competitive inhibitor of the enzyme. The difference spectra of the enzyme-NAD+-pyrazole complex gave an absorption peak at 305 nm with epsilon 305 14.5 X 10(3) M-1 X cm-1. Concentrations and amounts of active enzyme can thus be determined. A kinetic rate assay to determine the concentration of enzyme active sites is also presented. This has been developed from active site concentrations established by titration at 305 nm of the enzyme and pyrazole with NAD+. In contrast with the amino acid composition, which indicated that D. lebanonensis Adh and the D. melanogaster alleloenzymes were not closely related, the enzymological studies showed that their active sites were similar although differing markedly from those of zinc alcohol dehydrogenases.     

The specificities and configurations of ternary complexes of yeast and liver alcohol dehydrogenases

1. Some aspects of the substrate specificities of liver and yeast alcohol dehydrogenases have been investigated with pentan-3-ol, heptan-4-ol, (+)-butan-2-ol, (+/-)-butan-2-ol, (+/-)-hexan-3-ol and (+/-)-octan-2-ol as potential substrates. The liver enzyme is active with all substrates tested, including both isomers of each optically active alcohol. In contrast, the yeast enzyme is completely inactive towards those secondary alcohols where both alkyl groups are larger than methyl and active with only the (+)-isomers of butan-2-ol and octan-2-ol. 2. The absence of stereospecificity of liver alcohol dehydrogenase towards optically active secondary alcohols and its broad specificity towards secondary alcohols in general are explained in terms of an alkyl-binding site that will react with a variety of alkyl groups and the ability of the enzyme to accommodate a fairly large unbound alkyl group in an active enzyme-NAD(+)-secondary alcohol ternary complex. The absolute optical specificity of the yeast enzyme towards n-alkylmethyl carbinols and its unreactivity towards pentan-3-ol, hexan-3-ol and heptan-4-ol are explained by its inability to accept alkyl groups larger than methyl in the unbound position in a viable ternary complex. 3. Comparison of the known configurations of the n-alkylmethyl carbinols and [1-(2)H]ethanol and [1-(3)H]geraniol, which have been used in stereospecificity studies with these enzymes by other workers, provides strong evidence for which alkyl group of the substrate is bound to the enzyme in the oxidation of n-alkylmethyl carbinols. The conclusions reached are, for butan-2-ol oxidation with the liver enzyme, confirmed by deductions from kinetic data obtained with (+)-butan-2-ol and a sample of butan-2-ol containing 66% of (-)-butan-2-ol. 4. Initial-rate parameters for the oxidations of (+)-butan-2-ol, 66% (-)-butan-2-ol and pentan-3-ol by NAD with liver alcohol dehydrogenase are presented. The data are completely consistent with a general mechanism of catalysis previously proposed for this enzyme.     

Purification and preliminary characterization of alcohol dehydrogenase from Aspergillus nidulans.

Aspergillus alcohol dehydrogenase is produced in response to growth in the presence of a wide variety of inducers, of which the most effective are short-chain alcohols and ketones, e.g. butan-2-one and propan-2-ol. The enzyme can be readily extracted from fresh or freeze-dried cells and purified to homogeneity on Blue Sepharose in a single step by using specific elution with NAD+ and pyrazole. The pure enzyme has Mr 290 000 by electrophoresis or gel filtration; it is a homopolymer with subunit Mr 37 500 by electrophoresis in sodium dodecyl sulphate; its amino acid composition corresponds to Mr 37 900, and the native enzyme contains one zinc atom per subunit. The enzyme is NAD-specific and has a wide substrate activity in the forward and reverse reactions; its activity profile is not identical with those of other alcohol dehydrogenases.     

The reversibility of cytosolic dehydrogenase reactions in hepatocytes from starved and fed rats. Effect of fructose.

The metabolism of [2-3H]lactate was studied in isolated hepatocytes from fed and starved rats metabolizing ethanol and lactate in the absence and presence of fructose. The yields of 3H in ethanol, water, glucose and glycerol were determined. The rate of ethanol oxidation (3 mumol/min per g wet wt.) was the same for fed and starved rats with and without fructose. From the detritiation of labelled lactate and the labelling pattern of ethanol and glucose, we calculated the rate of reoxidation of NADH catalysed by lactate dehydrogenase, alcohol dehydrogenase and triosephosphate dehydrogenase. The calculated flux of reducing equivalents from NADH to pyruvate was of the same order of magnitude as previously found with [3H]ethanol or [3H]xylitol as the labelled substrate [Vind & Grunnet (1982) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 720, 295-302]. The results suggest that the cytoplasm can be regarded as a single compartment with respect to NAD(H). The rate of reduction of acetaldehyde and pyruvate was correlated with the concentration of these metabolites and NADH, and was highest in fed rats and during fructose metabolism. The rate of reoxidation of NADH catalysed by lactate dehydrogenase was only a few per cent of the maximal activity of the enzymes, but the rate of reoxidation of NADH catalysed by alcohol dehydrogenase was equal to or higher than the maximal activity as measured in vitro, suggesting that the dissociation of enzyme-bound NAD+ as well as NADH may be rate-limiting steps in the alcohol dehydrogenase reaction.