essential amino acid

American

noun

Biochemistry.

any amino acid that is required by an animal for growth but that cannot be synthesized by the animal's cells and must be supplied in the diet.

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.

She realized that, while it’s not an essential amino acid for us, pipecolic acid is also present in humans.

From Salon • Mar. 5, 2025

Arginine, an essential amino acid, also stimulates the release of vasopressin and was shown to deliver a reliable diagnosis.

From Science Daily • Nov. 16, 2023

“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