The chemistry of amino acid side chains is critical to protein structure because these side chains can bond with one another to hold a length of protein in a certain shape or conformation.

The defining feature of an amino acid is its side chain (at top, blue circle; below, all colored circles). When connected together by a series of peptide bonds, amino acids form a polypeptide ...

This image illustrates the general structure of an amino acid.The central carbon atom (C) is bonded to a hydrogen atom (H), an amino group (NH2), a carboxyl group (COOH), and a variable side chain (R ...

The specific structure of a protein determines its unique biological function. (click on image to enlarge) (Image: National Human Genom Research Institute) Proteins are built from a set of 20 standard ...

The team engineered special "pockets" within a protein cage structure called ferritin ... in the orientation of the ...