Health informatics

Serum ammonia, hospital mortality linked in ICU cirrhosis patients

For patients with cirrhosis in the intensive care unit (ICU), there is an association between early serum ammonia and hospital mortality, according to a study published online July 20 in Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics.

Oncology & Cancer

Proteome of rare liver cancer sheds new light on basic biology

Doctors have long puzzled over a mystery at the heart of fibrolamellar carcinoma, a rare and deadly liver cancer that mainly affects children and young adults. Like more common liver cancers, and liver failure itself, fibrolamellar ...

Neuroscience

Why the brain swells after liver damage

Liver encephalopathy is one of the diseases that claims most lives worldwide. A Norwegian study has revealed that the disease disturbs vital processes in the brain.

Medical research

Researchers develop a portable blood ammonia detector

Seated around the dinner table, faculty affiliated with Stanford ChEM-H—one of Stanford University's interdisciplinary institutes—spoke one-by-one, pitching ideas for collaborative research. Inspired by a recent medical ...

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Ammonia

Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula NH3. It is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or indirectly, is also a building-block for the synthesis of many pharmaceuticals. Although in wide use, ammonia is both caustic and hazardous. In 2006, worldwide production was estimated at 146.5 million tonnes. It is used in commercial cleaning products.

Ammonia, as used commercially, is often called anhydrous ammonia. This term emphasizes the absence of water in the material. Because NH3 boils at -33.34 °C (-28.012 °F) at a pressure of 1 atmosphere, the liquid must be stored under high pressure or at low temperature. Its heat of vapourization is sufficiently high so that NH3 can be readily handled in ordinary beakers, in a fume hood (i.e., if it is already a liquid it will not boil readily). "Household ammonia" or "ammonium hydroxide" is a solution of NH3 in water. The concentration of such solutions is measured in units of baume (density), with 26 degrees baume (about 30% w/w ammonia at 15.5 °C) being the typical high concentration commercial product. Household ammonia ranges in concentration from 5 to 10 weight percent ammonia.

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