essential amino acid
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of essential amino acid
First recorded in 1935–40
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Leucine is an essential amino acid, meaning the body cannot produce it on its own and it must come from food.
From Science Daily • May 21, 2026
Two key factors determine the quality of a protein: its essential amino acid content and how well it is digested and absorbed.
From Salon • Sep. 18, 2024
“The essential amino acid makeup of the synthetic milk is going to be identical to real milk,” Jimenez-Flores says.
From Slate • Apr. 20, 2015
If a particular essential amino acid is not available in sufficient quantities in the amino acid pool, however, synthesis of proteins containing it can slow or even cease.
From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013
The gene's specific job is to produce a protein that enables cells to utilize an essential amino acid called tryptophan.
From Time Magazine Archive
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
