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Peptide Nomenclature Guide

Symbols and structures for amino acids

Common (“proteinogenic” or “coded”) amino acids have a three-letter symbol and are also represented by a one-letter symbol. Uncommon amino acids also have three-letter symbols and can be represented by the one-letter symbol “X”. The tables below list the symbols and abbreviations used in our website and literature.

• Table 1. Common Amino Acids
• Table 2. Uncommon Amino Acids
• Table 3. Substituents

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Table 1. Common Amino Acids

Key - Acidic Basic Non-polar (hydrophobic) Polar (uncharged)

Amino acid	Three-letter symbol	One-letter symbol	Chemical structure

Alanine	Ala	A
Arginine	Arg	R
Asparagine	Asn	N
Aspartic acid	Asp	D
Cysteine	Cys	C
Glutamine	Gln	Q
Glutamic acid	Glu	E
Glycine	Gly	G
Histidine	His	H
Isoleucine	Ile	I
Leucine	Leu	L
Lysine	Lys	K
Methionine	Met	M
Phenylalanine	Phe	F
Proline	Pro	P
Serine	Ser	S
Threonine	Thr	T
Tryptophan	Trp	W
Tyrosine	Tyr	Y
Valine	Val	V

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Table 2. Uncommon Amino Acids

Three letter symbol	Amino Acid

Aib	Alpha-aminoisobutyric acid (2-aminoalanine)
Aze	2-Carboxyazetidine
Dap	Diaminopropionic acid
Glp	Pyroglutamic acid (Pyr) (pGlu)
Hyp	4-Hydroxyproline
Igl	α-Amino-2-indanacetic acid
Nal	t-Butyloxycarbonyl-L-(1-Naphthyl)alanine
Nle	Norleucine
Oic	L-Octahydroindole-2-carboxylic acid
Orn	Ornithine
Pen	Penicillamine (3-mercaptovaline)
pSer	Phospho-L-serine
pThr	Phospho-L-threonine
pTyr	Phospho-L-tyrosine
Sar	Sarcosine (N-methylglycine)
Thi	3-Thienylalanine
Tic	L-1,2,3,4-Tetrahydro-isoquinoline-3-carboxylic acid
Nphe	N-Benzylglycine

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Table 3. Substituents

Abbreviation	Substituent

Ac	Acetyl
Bn	Benzyl, Bzl
Bz	Benzoyl
For	Formyl
Me	Methyl
Myr	Myristoyl
Z	Benzyloxycarbonyl

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