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In which organ ammonia is converted to urea?

seo-qna
Last updated date: 16th Sep 2024
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Hint: Urea is mostly produced by mammals, including humans. They are known as ureotelic animals because they release urea as the principal nitrogenous waste product. Animals' metabolism of nitrogen-containing substances relies heavily on urea. Urea is a nitrogen chemical that is not made up of proteins. That is, rumen microorganisms employ the nitrogen part of urea as a building block for protein formation.

Complete answer:
Ammonia is a poisonous byproduct of nitrogen metabolism that must be eliminated from our bodies. In the mitochondria of liver cells, the urea cycle, also known as the ornithine cycle, excess ammonia is converted to urea. The urea is formed, then absorbed into the bloodstream, filtered by the kidneys, and expelled in the urine.

The urea cycle enzymes convert ammonia to urea in the liver, and the urea is excreted by the kidneys. In an enterohepatic nitrogen circulation, a portion of the urea enters the gastrointestinal system and is degraded to create ammonia.

Urea is a metabolite (breakdown product) of amino acids that is formed in the liver. Ammonium ions are generated when amino acids are broken down. Some are employed in nitrogen compound production. Ammonium ions in excess are transformed to urea.

In the liver, ammonia is turned to urine.
The ornithine cycle is a process in which the liver cells react to carbon dioxide with ammonia to produce the less harmful chemical urea. Urine and water are excreted into the circulation and carried to the kidneys. The water-soluble urea is expelled in the urine after the kidneys filter the blood.

Waste ammonia is produced as a result of amino acid breakdown. This product must be excreted by all animals. Ammonia is excreted by the majority of aquatic species, also known as ammonotelic organisms. The urea cycle, which occurs primarily in the liver, allows organisms that cannot quickly and safely eliminate nitrogen as ammonia to convert it to a less harmful chemical, such as urea. The liver produces urea, which is subsequently released into the bloodstream and carried to the kidneys, where it is eventually expelled as urine.

Note:-
At high pressure and temperature, urea ($NH_2CONH_2$) is made from ammonia ($NH_3$) and gaseous carbon dioxide ($CO_2$). To produce urea, the components of this combination are separated, commonly by stripping away gaseous ammonia followed by carbon dioxide.