Pyrimidine Salvage and Degradation

Unlike the purine ring, which is not cleaved in humans and is excreted as poorly soluble uric acid, the pyrimidine ring is opened and degraded to highly soluble products, β-alanine (from the degradation of CMP and UMP) and β-aminoisobutyrate (from TMP degradation), with the production of ammonia and CO2.

Pyrimidine bases can be salvaged to nucleosides, which are phosphorylated to nucleotides. However, their high solubility makes pyrimidine salvage less significant clinically than purine salvage. [Note:
The salvage of pyrimidine nucleosides is the basis for using uridine in the treatment of hereditary orotic aciduria .]