Coupled oxidation of ascorbic acid and haemoglobin

Abstract

IN a preliminary publication [Lemberg, Legge & Lockwood, 1938] we have reported that by the coupled oxidation of haemoglobin and ascorbic acid the prosthetic group of haemoglobin is oxidized. Under appropriate conditions a product, still mixed with haemoglobin, can be obtained, in which the new-pros- thetic group is combined with native globin. Acids easily split off iron from the product of oxidation and form bile pigments. These observations suggest that the compound is a bile pigment-iron-native globin complex, which we have called choleglobin.