Tryptophan

Patent Granted Tryptophan (IUPAC-IUBMB abbreviation: Trp or W; IUPAC abbreviation: L-Trp or D-Trp; sold for medical use as Tryptan)[2] is one of the 22 standard amino acids and an essential amino acid in the human diet, as demonstrated by its growth effects on rats. It is encoded in the standard genetic code as the codon UGG. Only the L-stereoisomer of tryptophan is used in structural or enzyme proteins, but the R -stereoisomer is occasionally found in naturally produced peptides (for example, the marine venom peptide contryphan).[3] The distinguishing structural characteristic of tryptophan is that it contains an indole functional group.