Lysine

Lysine is an essential amino acid incorporated into proteins. Humans cannot synthesize enough to meet their needs and must obtain it from food.

Amino acid: An organic molecule with amino and carboxyl groups; amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. Lysine is one of the amino acids used to assemble proteins.
Protein biosynthesis: The cellular process that builds proteins by translating messenger RNA into amino acid chains. Translation inserts lysine at positions encoded by AAA or AAG.
Dietary protein: Protein consumed in food that supplies amino acids needed for body maintenance and growth. Foods rich in protein are the principal dietary sources of lysine.
Protein quality: A measure of how well a dietary protein supplies the amino acids needed by an organism. A shortage of lysine can limit the nutritional value of otherwise protein-rich foods.
Protein: A molecule made of one or more chains of amino acids folded into functional structures. Lysine’s main cellular role is as a residue in protein chains.
Lysine degradation: The metabolic pathways that break lysine down, principally into acetoacetyl-CoA in humans. These pathways dispose of lysine that is not used for protein or other functions.
Cereal grain: The edible seed of grasses such as wheat, rice, and maize, often used as a staple food. Many cereal grains provide relatively little lysine compared with human requirements.
Limiting amino acid: The indispensable amino acid present in the smallest proportion relative to an organism’s needs. Lysine is often the limiting amino acid in cereal-based diets.
Essential amino acid: An amino acid that an organism cannot produce in sufficient amounts and must obtain through its diet. Lysine is essential in humans because dietary intake must supply it.
Intestinal absorption: The transfer of digested nutrients from the intestinal lumen into the body. Dietary lysine enters circulation after absorption, mainly in the small intestine.

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