What is biotransformation often primarily responsible for regarding chemical substances?

Biotransformation is a crucial biological process that primarily involves the chemical modification of substances, especially xenobiotics, within an organism. One of the key roles of biotransformation is to increase the solubility of these substances, enabling more efficient excretion from the body. By converting lipophilic compounds, which are less soluble in water, into more hydrophilic metabolites, the body can effectively eliminate them through urine or bile.

This process is vital for detoxifying potentially harmful chemicals. When substances are transformed into more water-soluble forms, they are less likely to accumulate in body tissues, thereby reducing their potential toxicity. While biotransformation can occasionally produce more toxic metabolites, the primary goal in most cases is to facilitate the elimination of these substances, making the increase in solubility for excretion the correct focus here.

The other options do touch on aspects of biotransformation but do not align as closely with its primary function. For example, while some metabolites may be less effective than the parent compound, that is not the main aim of biotransformation. Protecting organisms from harm does occur as a secondary benefit of the process, but the direct action pertains to increasing solubility for removal.