Journal article

Effect of ingestion of hemoproteins on fecal excretion of hemes and porphyrins.

IS Rose, GP Young, DJ St John, MC Deacon, D Blake, RW Henderson

Clin Chem | Published : 1989

Abstract

Stools from asymptomatic volunteers on diets containing red meat, whole blood, or high fiber were analyzed for their content of hemes and dicarboxylic (heme-derived) porphyrins by the "HemoQuant" assay, the "Hemoccult" test, and "high-performance" liquid chromatography (HPLC). In 49 subjects, ingestion of red meat increased HemoQuant-determined combined fecal heme plus dicarboxylic porphyrins by an average 375%; the contribution of heme-derived porphyrins to total fecal porphyrins increased from 37% to 78%. Of subjects on a red-meat diet, 27% passed stools with a porphyrin content suggestive of a porphyria, compared with only 4% on a red-meat-free diet. These increases were due largely to pr..

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