Colorimetric Quantitation of Ammonia

Ammonia is an important source of nitrogen for living systems. It is produced in liver and converted to urea through the urea cycle. Ammonia is synthesized through amino acid metabolism and is toxic when present at high concentrations. Elevated levels of ammonia in blood (hyperammonemia) have been found in liver dysfunction (cirrhosis), while hyperammonemia is associated with defects in the urea cycle enzymes (e.g. ornithine transcarbamylase). The determination of ammonia is very useful for clinical laboratory to monitor health status.

AAT Bioquest's Amplite^® Colorimetric Ammonia Quantitation Kit provides a simple and sensitive colorimetric method for the quantitation of ammonia in foods and biological samples such as serum, plasma and urine, etc. The assay is based on an enzyme-coupled reaction of ammonia, which generates a blue colored product. The absorbance of the blue product is proportional to the concentration of ammonia, which can be measured colorimetrically at 660-670 nm. The assay can be performed in a convenient 96-well or 384-well microtiter plate format.