a 40-year-old manger at a prominent legal firm in L.A experiences abdominal pain post lunch. He goes to the restroom a couple of times, but continues to experience pain and cramps. He evevtually decides to get himself examined. While questioning him, you learn that he consumed two bottles of beer at lunch.The alcohol (ethyl alcohol/ethanol) content in a 12oz bottle of beer is about 5%.The man's weight is 150 lbs and he was drinking over an hour period.
state the chemical reaction that took place in the patient's body.
Identify the substance produced in the liver that helps catalyze this reaction.
http://www.choosehelp.com/alcoholism/alcohol-abuse-and-stomach-pain-its-probably-gastritis.html
You may find this useful
http://www.chemcases.com/alcohol/alc-06.htm
You might also ask a question about the ethnic background of the manger.
The chemical reaction that took place in the patient's body is the metabolism of alcohol, specifically ethanol, in the liver. The primary enzyme responsible for metabolizing ethanol is alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH). This enzyme catalyzes the oxidation of ethanol to acetaldehyde.
In addition to ADH, another enzyme called acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) further metabolizes acetaldehyde into acetate. However, the question does not specify whether acetaldehyde dehydrogenase plays a role, so we will focus on the initial reaction catalyzed by alcohol dehydrogenase.
Therefore, the substance produced in the liver that helps catalyze the metabolism of alcohol is alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH).
In this scenario, the chemical reaction that took place in the patient's body is the metabolism of alcohol. Ethanol, the main component of alcohol, undergoes a series of chemical reactions in the body to be broken down and eliminated.
The first step in the process is the oxidation of ethanol in the liver, primarily by an enzyme called alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH). ADH converts ethanol into acetaldehyde. This reaction can be represented as follows:
Ethanol + NAD+ → Acetaldehyde + NADH + H+
NAD+ is a coenzyme that accepts hydrogen atoms during the oxidation of ethanol. NADH is the reduced form of NAD+.
The second step in alcohol metabolism is the further oxidation of acetaldehyde into acetic acid, mainly through the action of another liver enzyme called acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH). This reaction can be represented as:
Acetaldehyde + NAD+ → Acetic Acid + NADH + H+
NAD+ is once again the coenzyme involved in accepting the hydrogen atoms.
It's important to note that acetic acid is then converted into carbon dioxide and water through various metabolic pathways in the body.
For the second part of your question, the substance produced in the liver that helps catalyze the oxidation of ethanol into acetaldehyde is the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH). ADH plays a crucial role in the initial steps of alcohol metabolism.