Urobiliverdin, a New Bile Pigment Deriving from Uroporphyrin

Abstract

5-Aminolevulinic acid is incubated with a crude enzyme extract from Rhodopseudomonas spheroides, mutant R 26. The formed porphyrins (main product: uroporphyrin III) are isolated. Incorporation of iron, ring-splitting by coupled oxydation and subsequent iron removal leads to a mixture of pigments, from which urobiliverdin, a new bile pigment with eight carboxylic acid side chains, is isolated. It is characterized by its chromatographic behaviour, chromic acid degra­dation and UV-vis spectroscopy.