Cobalamin or vitamin B12 is a chemical compound that is also known as
cyanocobalamine. It is needed for nerve cells and red blood cells, and to make DNA.
It is an organometallic compound with a trivalent cobalt ion bound inside a corrin
ring.
Vitamin B12 deficiency is the cause of several forms of anemia. The treatment for
this disease was first devised by William Murphy who bled dogs to make them anemic
and then fed them various substances to see what (if anything) would make them
healthy again. He discovered that ingesting large amounts of liver seemed to cure the
disease. George Minot and George Whipple then set about to chemically isolate the
curative substance and ultimately were able to isolate vitamin B12 from the liver.
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