# ALDH2

Source: https://onco.cc/targets/aldh2/  
OnCo record `aldh2` (Target). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

ALDH2 (Aldehyde dehydrogenase, mitochondrial) is a gene that drives cell growth when it is altered. The public catalogues list it as a drug target and an oncogene driver, and clinical evidence ties its variants to diagnosis, prognosis or drug response. Tied to Osteosarcoma.

## Summary

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 hydrolysed to the carboxylic acid product through activation of a water molecule by the catalytic glutamate.

Open Targets scores its association with cancer at 0.58 (direct and indirect evidence; datatypes clinical 0.42, literature 0.99, genetic association 0.61, somatic mutation 0.43, animal model 0.52). IntOGen calls it a driver in 1 cohort (1 activating, 0 loss-of-function), covering Osteosarcoma.

## Fields

- Kind: Target
- Last checked: 2026-09-23
- Also known as: aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 family member; Aldehyde dehydrogenase, mitochondrial
- Tags: cancer-genes-wave
- Symbol: ALDH2
- Class: oncogene
- Biology: 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 hydrolysed 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 catalyses the oxidation of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetaldehyde (DOPAL), a reactive intermediate of dopamine catabolism, to 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetate (DOPAC). ALDH2 may also catalyse the oxidation of 4-aminobutanal (gamma-aminobutyraldehyde) to 4-aminobutanoate (GABA), representing an alternative route for GABA biosynthesis from polyamine catabolism. Location: Mitochondrion (UniProt). Locus 12q24.12 (HGNC).
- Where found: Osteosarcoma: IntOGen driver in 1 cohort (OS)

## Notes

- Written by scripts/fetch-cancer-genes.ts from CIViC, Open Targets, IntOGen, HGNC and UniProt; the function text is UniProt's, condensed and in UK spelling. Roles: Open Targets known-drug datatype score 0.42; IntOGen calls it an activating (Act) driver in 1 cohort. Evidence tier "clinical-evidence" is the strongest of those signals.
- Prevalence not recorded: none of the sources gives a positivity rate.

## Sources

- HGNC HGNC:404: https://www.genenames.org/data/gene-symbol-report/#!/hgnc_id/HGNC:404
- UniProt P05091: https://www.uniprot.org/uniprotkb/P05091/entry
- NCBI Gene 217: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/217
- Ensembl ENSG00000111275: https://www.ensembl.org/Homo_sapiens/Gene/Summary?g=ENSG00000111275

## Connected records

- collections: [IntOGen](https://onco.cc/collections/intogen/), [Open Targets Platform](https://onco.cc/collections/open-targets/)
- cancers: [Osteosarcoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/osteosarcoma/)

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JSON: https://onco.cc/api/v1/entities/aldh2.json