Why is the color of urine yellow? What it means?

A study published in Nature Microbiology on Wednesday identified the enzyme responsible for the characteristic yellow hue of urine. This discovery sheds light on a question that has puzzled scientists for more than a century, CBS News mentionted.

“It’s remarkable that an everyday biological phenomenon has remained unexplained for so long, and our team is excited to be able to explain it,” said Brantley Hall, assistant professor in the Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics at the University of Maryland. .

Urine is formed after a combination of electrolytes and waste products that a person’s kidneys filter from their blood. More than a century ago, scientists discovered that urobilin was the yellow pigment in urine, but they didn’t know how it was produced.

The researchers said that urine color is linked to the body’s red blood cells (RBCs).

Our red blood cells, like worn tires, eventually wear out. When they do, they leave behind a bright orange stain called bilirubin. That bilirubin takes a tour of your gut, either hitching a ride with your poop or sticking around for another loop.

But guess what? Tiny bugs in your gut, like tiny chefs, can take that orange lawn and turn it into different things, including the yellow stuff that gives your urine its sunny color. So the next time you see that yellow in the bowl, remember that it’s all thanks to these little chefs working their magic!

“Gut microbes encode the enzyme bilirubin reductase that converts bilirubin into a colorless byproduct called urocholinegen,” said Hall, lead author of the study. “Urocholinogen is then spontaneously degraded into a molecule called urobilin, which is responsible for the yellow color we all know.”

Before this study, scientists believed that several enzymes were behind the color of urine, the researchers added.

When you’re a hydrated person, your pee should be a clear whisper (not too much water, though!), or maybe a light shade of straw or honey. But if you’re stingy with water, it turns into a darker yellow or amber scream. Think of it as your body’s way of saying, “Hey, refill the tank!”