An intracellular aryl-alcohol dehydrogenase (previously referred to as aryl-aldehyde reductase) was purified from the white-rot fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium. The enzyme reduced veratraldehyde to veratryl alcohol using NADPH as a cofactor. Other aromatic benzaldehydes were also reduced, but not aromatic ketones. Methoxy-substituted rings were better substrates than hydroxylated ones. The enzyme was also able to reduce a dimeric aldehyde (4-benzyloxy-3-methoxybenzaldehyde). The highest reduction rate was measured when 3,5-dimethoxybenzaldehyde was used as a substrate. On SDS/PAGE the purified enzyme showed one major band with a molecular mass of 47 kDa, whereas gel filtration suggested a molecular mass of 280 kDa. Polyclonal antibodies raised against the gel purified 47-kDa protein were able to immunoprecipitate the aryl-alcohol dehydrogenase indicating that its activity possibly resides entirely in this protein fragment. The pI of the enzyme was 5.2 and it was most active at pH 6.1. The aryl-alcohol dehydrogenase was partially inhibited by typical oxidoreductase inhibitors.