Abstract
One of the fundamental facts about mammals is that they are intolerant to even modest concentrations of ammonium ion in the cellular environment. Simpler organisms living in a water environment have little problem with nitrogen disposal, since ammonia diffuses freely and is thereby diluted to a very low concentration. During evolution, when a movement from marine to terrestrial environment occurred, a more efficient detoxication mechanism for ammonia was needed, and the formation of urea developed.
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© 1978 Plenum Publishing Corporation
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Räihä, N.C.R., Kekomäki, M. (1978). Development of the Ornithine-Urea Cycle. In: Stave, U. (eds) Perinatal Physiology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-2316-7_24
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-2316-7_24
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