Phenylalanine
Phenylalanine
Phenylalanine facts
- Phenylalanine is an essential amino acid
- Phenylalanine functions as a building block of protein in the body
- Phenylalanine is available in several forms
- Phenylalanine is used to make tyrosine
Phenylalanine is an essential amino acid. This means the body cannot make it at all, or not in sufficient amounts for good health and it needs to be eaten as part of the diet every day.
Phenylalanine, just like all the other amino acids, is one of the building blocks of all proteins in the body, which not only include muscles, but also all the other proteins required for normal function of the body.
Phenylalanine is available in various forms – L-Phenylalanine, D-Phenylalanine and DL-Phenylalanine. The L-Phenylalanine form is the most common and the type in which it is incorporated into the body’s proteins. The D-Phenylalanine form acts as a painkiller and the DL-Phenylalanine is a combination of the two
Phenylalanine is used to synthesise the non-essential amino acid tyrosine.
