Question - Ethylene glycol (EG) is a well-characterised metabolic poison that causes considerable harm to humans and animals and can lead to fatalities. EG interferes with mammalian alcohol metabolism.
i) Briefly describe how alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) participates in EG toxicity, include the names of the toxic products that are formed and, generally, how the accumulation of these toxic products can lead to life-threatening situations.
ii) Imagine you are medical professional working in the Accident & Emergency department in a major hospital. Briefly describe the treatment options and how you would treat a patient that presents with EG poisoning?
iii) EG acts as an enzyme inhibitor; that is a molecule that binds to an enzyme and affects its normal mechanism of action and its normal activity. At the level of the enzyme ADH, which type of reversible enzyme inhibition is utilized in the effective treatment of EG poisoning?