A glucuronide, also known as glucuronoside, is any substance produced by linking glucuronic acid to another substance via a glycosidic bond.[1] The glucuronides belong to the glycosides.
Glucuronidation, the conversion of chemical compounds to glucuronides, is a method that animals use to assist in the excretion of toxic substances, drugs or other substances that cannot be used as an energy source. Glucuronic acid is attached via a glycosidic bond to the substance, and the resulting glucuronide, which has a much higher water solubility than the original substance, is eventually excreted by the kidneys.[2]
Enzymes that cleave the glycosidic bond of a glucuronide are called glucuronidases.
- ^ The American Heritage Medical Dictionary, 2007, Houghton Mifflin Company
- ^ Yang G, Ge S, Singh R, Basu S, Shatzer K, Zen M, et al. (May 2017). "Glucuronidation: driving factors and their impact on glucuronide disposition". Drug Metabolism Reviews. 49 (2): 105–138. doi:10.1080/03602532.2017.1293682. PMC 7660525. PMID 28266877.