Molecules for Life

Theanine: The Non-Proteinogenic Amino Acid That Gates the Waking Brain Theanine is a non-proteinogenic amino acid found almost exclusively in the leaves of Camellia sinensis, the plant that gives us green, black, white, and oolong tea. Its chemical structure is a simple ethylamide modification of glutamate: L-gamma-glutamylethylamide. This structural mimicry of the brain's most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter is the key to its entire pharmacology. Theanine crosses the bl

Glutamic Acid: The Primary Excitatory Neurotransmitter and the Metabolic Junction of Nitrogen, Energy, and Taste Glutamic acid, the ionized form of which is glutamate, occupies a position in human physiology that is singular in its scope and dual in its identity. It is, by concentration, the most abundant amino acid in the brain, where it serves as the primary excitatory neurotransmitter at over 90 percent of cortical synapses. Simultaneously, it is a non-essential amino acid

Carnosine: The Histidine Dipeptide and the Biochemistry of Long-Term Tissue Integrity Carnosine is a naturally occurring dipeptide composed of the amino acids beta-alanine and L-histidine, linked by a peptide bond synthesized by the enzyme carnosine synthase. It is not incorporated into proteins. It is not a precursor for a classical neurotransmitter. It operates on a different axis of biology entirely: the long-term protection of post-mitotic tissues from the slow chemical d