Abstract
Although Meldola drew attention in 1871 to the solubility in water of the yellow pigment of the common English brimstone butterfly (Gonepteryx rhamni) it was another twenty years before the pigment was examined chemically by Hopkins. His investigations into the pigments of butterfly wings revealed that there are several of these water-soluble compounds. Subsequently, they were shown to occur widely as insect eye pigments, and one, given the name xanthopterin, was discovered in human urine. It was not, however, until 1940 that the structures of these compounds began to be elucidated and confirmed by synthesis. This was largely the work of Wieland and Weygand and their respective associates. It was Wieland who, in 1941, named the compounds ’pteridines’ (Greek pteron = wing).
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Angier, R.B. et al. (1946) Science, 103, 667–671.
Wider Reading (Books and Reviews)
Bather, A., Mailänder, B., Baur, R., Eggers, V., Harders, H. and Schnepple, H.(eds) (1975) Chemistry and Biology of Pteridines, de Gruyter, Berlin.
Brown, G.M. and Williamson, J.M. (1982) Biosynthesis of riboflavin, folic acid,thiamine and pantothenic acid, Advances in Enzymology, 53, 345–381.
Gates, M. (1947) The chemistry of the pteridines, Chemical Reviews, 41, 53–95.
Shiota, J. (1971) Biosynthesis of folic acid and 6-substituted pteridines, in Comprehensive Biochemistry, (eds M. Florkin and E.H. Stotz), Vol. 21, Elsevier,Amsterdam, pp. 111–152.
Shive, W. (1963) Folic acid and pteridines, in Comprehensive Biochemistry (eds M. Florkin and E.H. Stotz), Vol. 2, Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp. 83–102.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1998 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Brown, E.G. (1998). Pteridines. In: Ring Nitrogen and Key Biomolecules. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-4906-8_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-4906-8_7
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-010-6058-5
Online ISBN: 978-94-011-4906-8
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive