the Urea Cycle

the Urea Cycle

The urea cycle (aka the ornithine cycle) is a cycle of biochemical reactions that produces urea (\(H_2NCONH_2\)) from ammonia (\(NH_3\)). Amino acids lose their amine groups upon catabolism These amine groups become toxic ammonia Ammonia needs to be excreted, or it will impair cephalic metabolic activities It gets converted into non-toxic urea in the hepatocytes Urea is excreted in the urine

Steps: Transamination Oxidative Deamination Nitrogen removal Urea Cycle