Ammonia is a gas characterized by its pungent odor.
Ammonia is a gas that is made up of three hydrogen atoms and one nitrogen atom, its chemical formula being NH3 . A Greek word passed into Latin as ammoniăcum and then came to our language as ammonia or ammonia : both accentuations are accepted by the Royal Spanish Academy ( RAE ).
This gas , which can dissolve in water, is colorless and characterized by its unpleasant and penetrating aroma. It should be noted that the dissolution of ammonia in water at 35% is also known as ammonia.
Ammonia is produced naturally by the action of bacteria in the soil or in animals and plants that are in the process of decomposition. Even in small quantities, it is present in the atmosphere . It can also be obtained at an industrial level.
Uses of ammonia
Among the different uses of ammonia - which is usually sold in a liquid state - is the production of fertilizers, paper, plastic , cleaning supplies, explosives and refrigerants. On the other hand, ammonia is used in the treatment of textile and wood fibers, as fuel and even in food products to prevent the emergence of microbes.
Although the toxicity of ammonia is low, if it appears in a very high concentration it can cause skin and throat irritation, as well as eye and respiratory tract disorders.
If the necessary precautions are not taken when using ammonia, it is possible that its passage through the respiratory tract causes poisoning; Likewise, direct contact with the skin can cause adverse reactions, ranging from bluish lips to severe burns, depending on how long the product remains on the body.
Ammonia should be handled with caution.
Its presence in the human body
It should be noted that, as a product of amino acid metabolism, ammonia is present in the human body. The liver is responsible for transforming ammonia into urea through several reactions.
When the liver does not function properly, the presence of ammonia in the blood can grow to cause hyperammonemia . In this particular case, we also talk about ammonium , a cation that is formed through the protonation of ammonia; It has a positive charge, its molecular weight is 18.04 and it is polyatomic.
In the field of chemistry, we understand protonation to be the process that consists of combining a proton with an ion, a molecule or an atom to form a single resulting body. Many consider it the most important chemical reaction , since it is part of many of the fundamental processes. Molecules and ions that are capable of undergoing protonation more than once are known as polybasics .
Returning to the disease called hyperammonemia, it is a problem that can seriously hinder the development of people, with special harm to newborn babies. Among the easiest symptoms of hyperammonemia to detect are vomiting, lethargy (abnormal sleepiness that appears due to some disorder; in this case it can last until it leads to seizures) and diarrhea.
To detect the presence of this disease, doctors carry out a serum determination of the aforementioned ammonia cation, ammonium. If this first evaluation is positive, then it becomes necessary to perform tests to determine its etiology (the causes of the disease), and among them are the following: coagulation; liver function; computed axial tomography ( CT ) of the abdomen; liver ultrasound.
If once these tests have been carried out, the doctors cannot find the etiology, then it is possible that the patient has an abnormal metabolism from birth; To be sure of this condition, it is necessary to determine glutamine, citrulline and arginosuccinic acid in urine and serum.