What does ALT stand for?

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ALT is a liver-focused enzyme used as a biomarker of hepatocellular injury. It stands for alanine aminotransferase, an enzyme that transfers an amino group from alanine to alpha-ketoglutarate to form pyruvate and glutamate. Because ALT is highly concentrated in hepatocytes, its levels rise when liver cells are damaged, making it a useful indicator of liver injury in blood tests. The other enzymes listed are different: aspartate aminotransferase is another transaminase but is found in heart and muscle as well, so it’s less specific for the liver; lactate dehydrogenase is a more general enzyme that rises in many conditions; alanyl transferase isn’t the standard name for this enzyme. Therefore, the correct designation is alanine aminotransferase.