Why might alcohol dehydrogenase metabolize ethylene glycol and how could you use ethanol to treat ethylene glycol poisoning?

Human Anatomy & Physiology (11th Edition)
11th Edition
ISBN:9780134580999
Author:Elaine N. Marieb, Katja N. Hoehn
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Chapter1: The Human Body: An Orientation
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Question #4. Ethylene glycol is a major component of antifreeze. Antifreeze is often consumed
by pets and other animals because of its sweet taste. By itself it is a harmless substance but it is
broken down in the body into oxalic acid (a deadly poison) by the enzyme, alcohol
dehydrogenase.
HO
H
|
·C
H
Ethylene glycol
H
|
HH
| |
C-OH H-C-C-O-H
HH
H
Ethanol
Why might alcohol dehydrogenase metabolize ethylene glycol and how could you use ethanol to
treat ethylene glycol poisoning?
Transcribed Image Text:Question #4. Ethylene glycol is a major component of antifreeze. Antifreeze is often consumed by pets and other animals because of its sweet taste. By itself it is a harmless substance but it is broken down in the body into oxalic acid (a deadly poison) by the enzyme, alcohol dehydrogenase. HO H | ·C H Ethylene glycol H | HH | | C-OH H-C-C-O-H HH H Ethanol Why might alcohol dehydrogenase metabolize ethylene glycol and how could you use ethanol to treat ethylene glycol poisoning?
Rate of product formation
Maximum speed of reaction
Catalyzed
reaction
Uncatalyzed
reaction
Substrate concentration
In the figure above, we can see that there are differences between the rates of chemical reactions
with (red), and without (blue) the assistance of enzymes. While the rate of catalysis increases
linearly with the addition of more substrate for the non-enzymatic reaction, we see that there is a
limit to the speed of the reaction when an enzyme is involved. Briefly describe the factors that
contribute to the limited speed of the enzyme.
Transcribed Image Text:Rate of product formation Maximum speed of reaction Catalyzed reaction Uncatalyzed reaction Substrate concentration In the figure above, we can see that there are differences between the rates of chemical reactions with (red), and without (blue) the assistance of enzymes. While the rate of catalysis increases linearly with the addition of more substrate for the non-enzymatic reaction, we see that there is a limit to the speed of the reaction when an enzyme is involved. Briefly describe the factors that contribute to the limited speed of the enzyme.
Expert Solution
Step 1

Ethylene glycol and ethanol have a very similar structure (only one OH group difference). Because of it's structural similarity to ethanol, ethylene glycol can bind to alcohol dehydrogenase and gets hydrolyzed by the said enzyme.

 

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