L-Ornithine Powder

I. Basic Information

• CAS Number: 70-26-8
• English Name: L-Ornithine
• Chinese Name: L-鸟氨酸
• Molecular Formula: C5H12N2O2
• Molecular Weight: 132.16 (or 132.19, may vary slightly depending on the source)

II. Physical Properties

• Melting Point: 140°C (fine crystals, softening at 120°C)
• Boiling Point: 244.08°C (rough estimate) or 308.7±32.0 °C at 760 mmHg (data from another source)
• Density: 1.1740 (rough estimate) or 1.2±0.1 g/cm³ (data from another source)
• Refractive Index: 1.4496 (estimated) or 1.508 (data from another source)
• Solubility: Easily soluble in water and ethanol, slightly soluble in ether
• Storage Condition: Store under an inert gas (nitrogen or argon) at 2–8°C

III. Chemical Properties

• Acid Dissociation Constant (pKa): 1.705 (at 25°C)
• Toxicity: sce-hmn-lym 10 mg/L (MUREAV 372,75,1996)

IV. Biological Activity and Uses

• L-Ornithine has an anti-fatigue effect, increases the efficiency of energy consumption, and promotes the excretion of ammonia.
• In biological systems, ornithine is mainly involved in the urea cycle, which plays an important role in the excretion of ammonia nitrogen from the body.
• In medicine, ornithine is commonly used together with arginine to formulate foaming beverages for fatigue recovery, in addition to being used as a reagent and injection solution.
• Ornithine has increasingly wide applications in the food and pharmaceutical industries, such as being used as a nutritional supplement to provide the body with ornithine.
• In cosmetics, ornithine hydrochloride is considered to have moisturizing and antioxidant properties.

V. Preparation Methods

• Ornithine can be generated from arginine by the action of arginine-degrading enzymes or arginine-degrading bacteria.
• Preparation methods mainly include chemical synthesis, hydrolysis of arginine, and microbial fermentation. Among them, microbial fermentation is one of the main preparation processes in recent years.

VI. Other Information

• L-Ornithine hydrochloride is a commonly used reagent form, which is easily soluble in water but insoluble in methanol, ethanol, and ether.
• Pure ornithine is a white solid, but it is often in the form of a slurry due to its difficulty in crystallization.

In summary, L-Ornithine is an amino acid that plays an important role in biological systems. Its physical properties, chemical properties, biological activity, and uses have been extensively studied, and there are various preparation methods available.