Nitrosobenzene-induced ferrihemoglobin formation in Japanese quail erythrocytes. The significance of ferrihemoglobin reduction.

Quantitative aspects of nitrosobenzene-induced ferrihemoglobin formation were studied in quail erythrocytes in comparison to goat red cells. Many similarities exist with the mechanism in mammalian red cells such as a NADPH-dependent enzymatic recycling of phenylhydroxylamine from nitrosobenzene. Also the mechanism of ferrihemoglobin reduction is similar in both species, it is a NADH-dependent process. However, the reducing activity of quail red cells exceeds by far the activity of the majority of mammalian erythrocytes.