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Multiple Choice

Which organ is responsible for converting ammonia to urea for excretion?

The liver handles detoxifying nitrogen by converting ammonia into urea through the urea cycle. Ammonia is produced from amino acid breakdown and is highly toxic, so the liver rapidly processes it into urea, a much less toxic compound. Urea then travels to the kidneys to be excreted in urine. The spleen, kidney, and heart don’t perform this conversion—the kidney excretes urea, but the actual production of urea from ammonia occurs in the liver.

The liver handles detoxifying nitrogen by converting ammonia into urea through the urea cycle. Ammonia is produced from amino acid breakdown and is highly toxic, so the liver rapidly processes it into urea, a much less toxic compound. Urea then travels to the kidneys to be excreted in urine. The spleen, kidney, and heart don’t perform this conversion—the kidney excretes urea, but the actual production of urea from ammonia occurs in the liver.