Name:

Title: Nitrogen Excretion (Solubility of Ammonia, Urea and Uric acid)

Aim: To describe the processes involved in the formation of nitrogenous waste.

Questions

1. Identify two classes of polymeric biomolecules which contain nitrogen.

___________________________________________________________________ [1 mark]

2. Identify the ammonia, urea and uric acid in the diagrams below. Write the empirical and
structural formula for ammonium.

_____________ ________________ _______________________

[ 2 mark]
3. The equation below shows the formation of
a) Ammonia
b) Ammonium
c) Uric acid
d) Urea

[1 mark]

4. Below is a summary of the relationship between products and habitat of representative animal
groups. Animals will excrete ammonia, uric acid or urea based on whether they live in a
terrestrial or aquatic habitat. Complete the table below.

Animal Excretory product Habitat

Protozoan Ammonia
Terrestrial Insect Terrestrial
Freshwater bony fish Aquatic
Marine bony fish Urea, trimethylamide oxide Aquatic
Bird Uric acid
Mammal

[3 marks]
5. Place urea, uric acid and ammonia in the appropriate slot under molecule.
Toxicity Water requirements Molecule
 Most toxic Requires most
Less toxic that molecule above Requires less water
Least toxic Requires the least water
[3 mark]
6. Below are diagrams showing deamination and transamination.
Figure 1. Transamination between alanine, aspartate and an organic acid.

Figure 2. Deamination of glutamate and formation of an organic acid.

i) Does transamination involve oxidation or reduction of the amino acid?

ii) Which element is used to oxidize or reduce the organic acid to form glutamate?

iii) State whether deamination is a reductive or oxidative of the amino acid.

[3 mark]
7. State the name of the processes described below.
 i) In the liver, amino groups are removed amino acids when they are in excess.

ii) The transfer of the amino group from amino acids to an organic acid.

iii) Toxic ammonia is converted to harmless product, urea, for transport to the kidneys.

___________________________________
[3 marks]
8. What is the major source of the following:

a. Ammonia _________________________________________________________

b. Uric acid _________________________________________________________

[2 marks]

Reference:

Urea Cycle Made Simple,2 mins 48 sec video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3rVr_SfXo8