PHENYLALANINE

Phenylalanine

Phenylalanine is an α-amino acid with the formula C6H5CH2CHCOOH. This essential amino acid is classified as nonpolar because of the hydrophobic nature of the benzyl side chain. L-Phenylalanine is an electrically neutral amino acid, one of the twenty common amino acids used to biochemically form proteins, coded for by DNA. The codons for L-phenylalanine are UUU and UUC. Phenylalanine is a precursor for tyrosine, the monoamine signaling molecules dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine, and the skin pigment melanin.

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phenylalanine

Noun

  1. An essential amino acid C9H11NO2 found in most animal proteins; it is essential for growth; the inability to metabolize it leads to phenylketonuria; it is a constituent of aspartame.


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: phenylalanine
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

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