Arginine

The most strongly basic amino acid. Positive charge at neutral pH. Commonly found at the active site of many proteins, has a strong affinity for negatively charged groups.

Formula: C₆H₁₄N₄O₂
Molecular Weight: 174.20
Three-letter code: Arg
One-letter code: R

An essential amino acid, commonly found at the active/catalytic site in proteins and enzymes. Arginine isn't assembled by the body, so it must be ingested, especially by people at a young age.

Sources of arginine include:

• brown rice
• nuts
• popcorn
• raisins
• whole-wheat products

structural formula for arginine:

 _                                             _
|    H   H                                      | +
|     \ /                                       |  
|      N         H   H     H   H         O      |
|       \\        \ /       \ /        //       |
|        C -- N -- C -- C -- C -- C -- C        |
|       /     |        / \       / \    \       |
| H -- N      H       H   H     H   N    O -- H |
|     /                            / \          |
|    H       arginine             H   H         |
|_           C6H15N4O2+                         _|