This gene encodes class V alcohol dehydrogenase, which is a member of the alcohol dehydrogenase family. Members of this family metabolize a wide variety of substrates, including ethanol, retinol, other aliphatic alcohols, hydroxysteroids, and lipid peroxidation products. This gene is expressed in the stomach as well as in the liver, and it contains a glucocorticoid response element upstream of its 5' UTR, which is a steroid hormone receptor binding site. Alternatively spliced transcript variants encoding different isoforms have been found for this gene. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2008].