Transamination
From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.
Transamination is the reaction between an amino acid and an alpha-keto acid. The amino group is transferred from the former to the latter. Transamination is accomplished by enzymes called transaminases or aminotransferases. The human body synthesizes the 11 non-essential amino acids and transamination is the process by which most of these syntheses occur. The chirality of an amino acid is determined during transamination. This reaction uses the coenzyme PLP, and is concidered to be a kenitically perfect reaction. The product of transamination reactions depend on the availability of alpha-keto acids. The products usually are either alanine, aspartate or glutamate, since their corresponding alpha-keto acids are produced through metabolism of fuels.
