- Central alpha-carbon (Cα) connected to:
- Amino group (H₂N–)
- Carboxyl group (–COOH)
- Side chain (R group) unique to each amino acid
- Hydrogen atom
Key:
NH₂ = amino group
COOH = carboxyl group
R = side chain (described explicitly)
Bonds shown as “–” (single) or “=” (double)
1. Alanine (Ala, A) — C₃H₇NO₂
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH3
2. Arginine (Arg, R) — C₆H₁₄N₄O₂
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–CH2–CH2–NH–C(=NH)–NH2
3. Asparagine (Asn, N) — C₄H₈N₂O₃
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–C(=O)–NH2
4. Aspartic Acid (Asp, D) — C₄H₇NO₄
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–COOH
5. Cysteine (Cys, C) — C₃H₇NO₂S
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–SH
6. Glutamic Acid (Glu, E) — C₅H₉NO₄
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–CH2–COOH
7. Glutamine (Gln, Q) — C₅H₁₀N₂O₃
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–CH2–C(=O)–NH2
8. Glycine (Gly, G) — C₂H₅NO₂
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
H
9. Histidine (His, H) — C₆H₉N₃O₂
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–(imidazole ring)
/N\
| |
C C–NH
\\ //
N
10. Isoleucine (Ile, I) — C₆H₁₃NO₂
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH–CH3
|
CH2–CH3
11. Leucine (Leu, L) — C₆H₁₃NO₂
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–CH–CH3
|
CH3
12. Lysine (Lys, K) — C₆H₁₄N₂O₂
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–CH2–CH2–CH2–NH2
13. Methionine (Met, M) — C₅H₁₁NO₂S
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–CH2–S–CH3
14. Phenylalanine (Phe, F) — C₉H₁₁NO₂
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–(benzene ring)
15. Proline (Pro, P) — C₅H₉NO₂
H
|
NH–C–COOH
\ |
CH2–CH2–CH2
\________/
16. Serine (Ser, S) — C₃H₇NO₃
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–OH
17. Threonine (Thr, T) — C₄H₉NO₃
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH(OH)–CH3
18. Tryptophan (Trp, W) — C₁₁H₁₂N₂O₂
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–(indole ring)
/N\
| |
C C
\\ //
C
19. Tyrosine (Tyr, Y) — C₉H₁₁NO₃
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–(benzene ring–OH)
20. Valine (Val, V) — C₅H₁₁NO₂
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH–CH3
|
CH3
Non-standard Amino Acids Found in Nature
21. Selenocysteine (Sec, U) — C₃H₇NO₂Se
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–SeH
- Incorporated at UGA codons with SECIS element.
- “21st amino acid” — similar to cysteine but with selenium instead of sulfur.
22. Pyrrolysine (Pyl, O) — C₁₂H₂₁N₃O₃
H
|
NH2–C–COOH
|
CH2–(pyrroline ring with lysine chain)
- Found in certain methanogenic archaea and bacteria.
- Encoded by UAG stop codon in special contexts.
Amino Acids – SolveForce Communications
Key terms in plain language
Open a term for a concise explanation of language used on this page.
VoIP
Voice over Internet Protocol carries phone calls over an IP network instead of a traditional analog phone line. Call quality depends on network stability, latency, and traffic management.
Unified Communications (UCaaS)
A cloud-based combination of business calling, messaging, meetings, presence, and collaboration tools managed as one communications service.
SIP Trunking
A service that connects a business phone system to the public telephone network using Internet Protocol, replacing or supplementing traditional phone lines.
Bandwidth
The amount of data a connection can carry in a given time, usually measured in Mbps or Gbps. More bandwidth supports more users, devices, and simultaneous applications.
Latency
The time it takes data to travel between two points. Lower latency improves voice, video meetings, cloud applications, gaming, and other real-time services.
Service-Level Agreement (SLA)
A provider’s written commitment covering service targets such as availability, response time, repair time, and sometimes financial credits when commitments are missed.