Alkaline phosphatase
Alkaline phosphatase has homology in a large number of other enzymes and composes part of a superfamily of enzymes with several overlapping catalytic aspects and substrate traits. This explains why most salient structural features of mammalian alkaline are the way they are and reference their substrate specificity and homology to other members of the nucleoside pyrophosphatase/phosphodiesterase family of isozyme. Research has shown a relationship between members of the alkaline phosphatase family with aryl sulfatases. The similarities in structure indicate that these two enzyme families came from a common ancestor. Further analysis has linked alkaline phosphates and aryl sulfatases to a larger superfamily. Some of the common genes found in this superfamily, are ones that encode phosphodiesterases as well as autotoxin.