Biologically Active Substance
amino acid Audio
a·mi·no ac·id [ uh-mee-noh, am-uh-noh as-id ]
Subclass of:
Amino Acids, Peptides, and Proteins
Definitions related to amino acids:
  • (aminoacid) Organic acid containing one or more amino groups, especially any of a group that make up proteins and are important to living cells; those that are nonessential can be synthesized by the body while essential acids must be obtained through the diet; there are also several important amino acids, such as the neurotransmitter g-aminobutyric acid, that have no relation to proteins.
    CRISP Thesaurus
    National Institutes of Health, 2006
  • Any organic compounds containing amino (-NH2) and carboxyl (-COOH) groups. In biochemistry, used to refer to the twenty-plus L-alpha-amino acids found in proteins.
    NCI Thesaurus
    U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
  • One of several molecules that join together to form proteins. There are 20 common amino acids found in proteins.
    NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms
    U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
  • Organic compounds that generally contain an amino (-NH2) and a carboxyl (-COOH) group. Twenty alpha-amino acids are the subunits which are polymerized to form proteins.
    NLM Medical Subject Headings
    U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
Try this search on: Farlex, Merriam-Webster, Oxford Dictionary, or Wordnik

This content should not be used in place of medically-reviewed decision support reference material or professional medical advice. Some terms may have alternate or updated definitions not reflected in this set. The definitions on this page should not be considered complete or up to date.