Protoporphyrinogen IX

Protoporphyrinogen IX is an organic chemical compound which is produced along the synthesis of porphyrins, a class of critical biochemicals that include hemoglobin and chlorophyll. It is a direct precursor of protoporphyrin IX. Protoporphyrinogen IX is an organic chemical compound which is produced along the synthesis of porphyrins, a class of critical biochemicals that include hemoglobin and chlorophyll. It is a direct precursor of protoporphyrin IX. The compound is a porphyrinogen, meaning that it has a non-aromatic hexahydroporphine core, which will be oxidized to a porphine core in later stages of the heme synthesis. Like most porphyrinogens, it is colorless. The compound is synthesized in most organisms from coproporphyrinogen III by the enzyme coproporphyrinogen oxidase: