When a patient has accidentally ingested methanol, a physician can order the use of ethanol to overwhelm the alcohol dehydrogenase enzyme. This prevents the liver from producing deadly formaldehyde from the methanol. This is an example of _____.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Ethanol acts as a competitive inhibitor by binding to the alcohol dehydrogenase enzyme, preventing methanol from being metabolized into toxic compounds like formaldehyde. This is because both ethanol and methanol compete for the same active site on the enzyme.

When a Patient Has Accidentally Ingested Methanol, a Physician Can