Pathway candidateNCBI-verifiedprotein-coding

ALDH2

aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 family member

NCBI Gene: 217 Ensembl GeneCards UniProt: P05091

Pathway candidate — not linked to PFS or PSSD by any record here

ALDH2 is in the library because it belongs to the drug metabolism family. No study, report or commentary in the corpus names it, so a variant in ALDH2 is not, by itself, evidence of anything related to post-drug syndromes.

Gene summary

A protein-coding gene on chromosome 12 (drug metabolism (phase i)). This protein belongs to the aldehyde dehydrogenase family of proteins. Aldehyde dehydrogenase is the second enzyme of the major oxidative pathway of alcohol metabolism.

Source: NCBI Gene, accessed 2026-10-07.

Protein reference (UniProt)

Protein: Aldehyde dehydrogenase, mitochondrial
Function (excerpt): Mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase with broad substrate specificity which participates in the detoxification of ethanol-derived acetaldehyde and endogenous aldehydes, including those arising from lipid peroxidation. The reaction mechanism involves a nucleophilic attack on the aldehyde substrate, resulting in formation of a thiohemiacetal intermediate. Subsequent hydride transfer to NAD+, yields a thioester intermediate which is hydrolyzed to the carboxylic acid product through activation of a water molecule by the catalytic glutamate. In vivo, ALDH2 is required for the clearance of formaldehyde, a cytotoxic and carcinogenic endogenous metabolite that induces DNA damage. It also catalyzes the oxidation of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetaldehyde (DOPAL), a reactive intermediate of dopamine catabolism, to 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetate (DOPAC).
Pathway: Alcohol metabolism; ethanol degradation; acetate from ethanol: step 2/2.
Subcellular location: Mitochondrion.
Associated conditions: AMED syndrome, digenic (AMEDS).

Source: UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot P05091, release 2026_03, licensed CC BY 4.0. This is the protein’s normal biology, not evidence about post-drug syndromes; associated conditions are inherited disorders of the gene, not PFS, PSSD or PRSD.

Why its pathway is in the library

Phase I enzymes determine exposure to finasteride, SSRIs, and other implicated drugs; variation here shapes the likelihood and persistence of adverse effects.

Written for the whole drug metabolism family, not for ALDH2 specifically.

Mentioned in 0 corpus records

No corpus record names ALDH2 directly yet. It is in the library because it sits in a pathway the corpus tracks (Drug metabolism).

Also in drug metabolism (phase i)

All 23 genes

Browse by family on the gene families page.

Protein reference (UniProt)

Protein: Aldehyde dehydrogenase, mitochondrial
Function (excerpt): Mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase with broad substrate specificity which participates in the detoxification of ethanol-derived acetaldehyde and endogenous aldehydes, including those arising from lipid peroxidation. The reaction mechanism involves a nucleophilic attack on the aldehyde substrate, resulting in formation of a thiohemiacetal intermediate. Subsequent hydride transfer to NAD+, yields a thioester intermediate which is hydrolyzed to the carboxylic acid product through activation of a water molecule by the catalytic glutamate. In vivo, ALDH2 is required for the clearance of formaldehyde, a cytotoxic and carcinogenic endogenous metabolite that induces DNA damage. It also catalyzes the oxidation of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetaldehyde (DOPAL), a reactive intermediate of dopamine catabolism, to 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetate (DOPAC).
Pathway: Alcohol metabolism; ethanol degradation; acetate from ethanol: step 2/2.
Subcellular location: Mitochondrion.
Associated conditions: AMED syndrome, digenic (AMEDS).