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Science 21 December 1973:
Vol. 182. no. 4118, pp. 1271 - 1272
DOI: 10.1126/science.182.4118.1271
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Articles

Evolution and the Biosynthesis of Ascorbic Acid

I. B. Chatterjee 1

1 Department of Biochemistry, University College of Science, Calcutta-700019, India

The ability to synthesize ascorbic acid is absent in the insects, invertebrates, and fishes. The biosynthetic capacity started in the kidney of amphibians, resided in the kidney of reptiles, became transferred to the liver of mammals, and finally disappeared from the guinea pig, the flying mammals, monkey, and man. A similar transition in the biosynthetic ability was observed in the branched evolution of the birds.


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