Vitmain b12
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Introduction: Vitamin B12, also known as Cobalamin, is the largest of the B vitamins, and is often listed as Cyanocobalamin on food packaging. It is a red crystalline substance that was isolated in 1948, is sensitive to ultraviolet light, and is vital to the functioning and growth of all animals.
Chemical Structure / Forms: Vitamin B12 is the only biomolecule with a stable metal-carbon bond (or an organometallic compound). The cobalt can link to a methyl group (methylcobalamin), a deoxyadenosine at the 5' position (adenosylcobalamin), or cyanide. The link in the Cobalamin completely determines the enzyme reaction. The core of the molecule is a corrin ring, which consists of 4 pyrrole subunits, joined on opposite sides by a C-CH3 methylene link, on one side by a C-H methylene link, with various attached side groups. The sixth ligand below the ring is a nitrogen of a 5,6-dimethylbenzimidazole. The other nitrogen of the 5,6-dimethylbenzimidazole is linked to a five-carbon sugar, which in turn connects to a phosphate group, eventually linking back into the corrin ring. In the very middle of the structure of the cobalt are five nitrogen and a carbon (See Appendix 1). Vitamin B12 is a water-soluble vitamin most often found in the physical form of a red crystal-like substance...