Heme concentrate and method for the preparation thereof

Abstract

A heme concentrate containing 15 to 55 percent heme in readily absorbable form and useful as a pharmaceutical against anemia and as an iron-enriching agent in foodstuffs, and a method for the preparation of said heme concentrate of a mixture of heme and blood substance obtained when cleaving hemoglobin, for example, from whole blood or red blood cells, by treating said mixture with a dehydrating agent, preferably a lower alcohol or a mixture of alcohols, either at a pH of at least 8.0 or in the presence of a substance promoting the separation, preferably imidazole or an imidazole derivative, at a pH of at least 6.0, preferably 6.5 to 8.5, whereafter the solid blood substance is separated and the heme concentrate is recovered from the remaining solution; the blood substance simultaneously recovered, mainly globin, is intended for purposes of foodstuffs and fodder.

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