Ascorbic Acid

Ascorbic acid, also known as vitamin C, is a water-soluble vitamin that plays an important role in many processes in the human body. Vitamin C is involved in collagen synthesis, immune regulation, iron absorption, antioxidant protection and many other processes.

Ascorbic acid belongs to the group of vitamins and is not synthesized in the human body, so it must be supplied with food. The main sources of vitamin C are citrus fruits, kiwi, black currants, broccoli, cabbage, and peppers.

A lack of vitamin C leads to the development of scurvy, which is manifested by bleeding gums, tooth loss, and hemorrhages. A sufficient supply of ascorbic acid is important for maintaining health and preventing many diseases. The recommended daily intake for an adult is 90 mg.

**Ascorbic acid** is one of the most popular and widely used vitamins in medicine and cosmetology. Widely distributed in nature. The most important representatives of the vitamin are L-ascorbic acid, which contains one amino group residue (L-isomer), and D-ascorbic acid without an amino group residue, D-L-ascorbates, which have two asymmetric carbohydrate groups. The peculiarity of the structure of the D-chiral form of vitamin C is that it gives the right to classify it as a lipoprotein - a carrier of chemical properties. Thus, the atomic structure of a vitamin, which has negative chirality, is one of the substances well studied by organic chemists. A monograph was dedicated to her (the joint work of employees of the pharmaceutical and chemical departments of the Institute of Organic Chemistry named after N.D. Zelinsky, V.G. Postovsky, etc.). L-isomers are colorless crystals with a very pleasant sour taste, soluble in water and insoluble in organic solvents. In the body of animals, enzymes can transform into DL-relatives. There are about 25 natural sources of vitamin C - products of plant, animal and mineral origin. They accumulate mainly in skin, meat, tomatoes, sweet peppers; smaller amounts of the vitamin are found in the heart, muscles, lungs and some other organs of animals. Vitamin C is especially widely represented in plant products - green leaves of all types of plants, green peas, vegetables, berries, fruits (cranberry, orange, tangerine, lemon, lingonberry, etc.), roots and rhizomes (parsley, horseradish, radish). In terms of the value of vitamin C among plants, citrus fruits take the first place - lemon, citron, orange. They are followed by rosehip, sea buckthorn, sweet pepper, black currant