Relating to or containing the amino group (-NH2), especially in reference to amino acids which are the building blocks of proteins.
From French amine (1863), coined by French chemist Charles-Adolphe Wurtz from ammonia. The term combines 'amm-' from ammonia with the suffix '-ine', reflecting its chemical relationship to nitrogen compounds.
There are 20 standard amino acids that form all proteins in living organisms, yet the sequence possibilities are virtually infinite - a protein with just 100 amino acids could theoretically exist in more arrangements than there are atoms in the observable universe.
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