The natural arginine is L-type .it will decompose at 238℃,also it is water-souble, ethanol-sparing soluble and insoluble in diethyl ether. Its product crystallizing from water contain two molecules of water of crystallization, and will lose crystal water when 105℃ .
Arginine is an important component of sperm protein, essential amino acids for animal belongs, although the body can own synthesis, the synthesis velocity is slow, so people call semi-essential amino acids. Due to the presence of guanidine the arginine show alkaline, easily reacting with an acid to salts, basic amino acid belongs. Arginine is an essential amino acid. In nutrition, the content of which in gelatin and protamine is more. It can be used as food additives and for the preparation of drugs. It can be produced from gelatin’s hydroxylation and refine.
Arginine is closely related to the generation of arginine urea in our living body, it also can form phosphoric acid arginine and creatine phosphate, which plays an important role in energy metabolism. In plant seeds, arginine often as a form of nitrogen is required to be stored for seed germination. Metabolites of spermine and spermidine, as well as alkaline histone containing more arginine, plays an important role both in stabling the DNA in prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells and in the expression of genetic information in the DNA process.
Arginine can participate in ornithine cycle, can promote the generation of urea in our body to reduce the piling up of ammonia leaving the ammonia drops .This is mainly used in clinical hepatic coma caused by increased blood ammonia, for the patients accompanied with alkalosis of glutamate or disabled one is the most appropriate.