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Alpha-amino acids are unique because the amino and carboxylic acid functional groups are separated by only one carbon atom, which is usually a chiral carbon. Proteins are long chains or polymers of a specific type of amino acid known as an alpha-amino acid.
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In chemistry, an amino acid is an organic compound that contains both an amino (-NH2) and carboxylic acid (-COOH) functional group, hence the name amino acid. Īmino acids are the basic building blocks of proteins, and they serve as the nitrogenous backbones for compounds like neurotransmitters and hormones. The term "limiting amino acid" may also refer to an essential amino acid that does not meet the minimal requirements for humans.
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The term "limiting amino acid" is used to describe the essential amino acid present in the lowest quantity in a food protein relative to a reference food protein like egg whites. The essential amino acids are also available from incomplete proteins, which are usually plant-based foods. Complete proteins usually derive from animal-based sources of nutrition, except for soy. A complete protein, by definition, contains all the essential amino acids. In terms of nutrition, the nine essential amino acids are obtainable by a single complete protein. The mnemonic PVT TIM HaLL ("private Tim Hall") is a commonly used device to remember these amino acids as it includes the first letter of all the essential amino acids. Although variations are possible depending on the metabolic state of an individual, the general held thought is that there are nine essential amino acids, including phenylalanine, valine, tryptophan, threonine, isoleucine, methionine, histidine, leucine, and lysine. These classifications resulted from early studies on human nutrition, which showed that specific amino acids were required for growth or nitrogen balance even when there is an adequate amount of alternative amino acids. In nutrition, amino acids are classified as either essential or non-essential. These amino acids must be supplied from an exogenous diet because the human body lacks the metabolic pathways required to synthesize these amino acids. Essential amino acids, also known as indispensable amino acids, are amino acids that humans and other vertebrates cannot synthesize from metabolic intermediates.