Conversion of bilirubin by transfer of electronic excitation energy generated in the presence of human methemoglobin

Abstract

The conversion of bilirubin into colourless products has been induced by transfer of electronic excitation energy and followed spectrophotometrically. The triplet excitation energy was generated by oxidation of 2-methylpropanal with oxygen in solution under catalytic action of human methemoglobin. A slower kinetics of transformation of bilirubin via this "photochemical reaction without light" has been observed for the bilirubin bound to human albumin as compared with the bilirubin alone.