Keyestudio
L-Cysteine 98% (25gr)
Cysteine (symbol Cys or C; /ˈsɪstɪiːn/) is a semiessential proteinogenic amino acid with the formula HOOC-CH-(NH2)-CH2-SH. The thiol side chain in cysteine often participates in enzymatic reactions as a nucleophile. When present as a deprotonated catalytic residue, sometimes the symbol Cyz is used. The deprotonated form can generally be described by the symbol Cym as well. The thiol is susceptible to oxidation to give the disulfide derivative cystine, which serves an important structural role in many proteins. In this case, the symbol Cyx is sometimes used. When used as a food additive, it has the E number E920. It is encoded by the codons UGU and UGC.
Structure
Like other amino acids (not as a residue of a protein), cysteine exists as a zwitterion. Cysteine has l chirality in the older d/l notation based on homology to d– and l-glyceraldehyde. In the newer R/S system of designating chirality, based on the atomic numbers of atoms near the asymmetric carbon, cysteine (and selenocysteine) have R chirality, because of the presence of sulfur (or selenium) as a second neighbor to the asymmetric carbon atom. The remaining chiral amino acids, having lighter atoms in that position, have S chirality. Replacing sulfur with selenium gives selenocysteine.
(R)-Cysteine (left) and (S)-Cysteine (right) in zwitterionic form at neutral pH
Dietary sources
Cysteinyl is a residue in high-protein foods. Although classified as a nonessential amino acid, in rare cases, cysteine may be essential for infants, the elderly, and individuals with certain metabolic diseases or who suffer from malabsorption syndromes. Cysteine can usually be synthesized by the human body under normal physiological conditions if a sufficient quantity of methionine is available.
Industrial sources
The majority of l-cysteine is obtained industrially by hydrolysis of animal materials, such as poultry feathers or hog hair. Despite widespread belief otherwise, little evidence shows that human hair is used as a source material and its use is explicitly banned for food additives and cosmetic products in the European Union. Synthetically produced l-cysteine, compliant with Jewish kosher and Muslim halal laws, is also available, albeit at a higher price. The synthetic route involves fermentation using a mutant of E. coli. Evonik (formerly Degussa) introduced a route from substituted thiazolines. Following this technology, l-cysteine is produced by the hydrolysis of racemic 2-amino-Δ2-thiazoline-4-carboxylic acid using Pseudomonas thiazolinophilum.
Applications
Cysteine, mainly the l–enantiomer, is a precursor in the food, pharmaceutical, and personal-care industries. One of the largest applications is the production of flavors. For example, the reaction of cysteine with sugars in a Maillard reaction yields meat flavors. l-Cysteine is also used as a processing aid for baking.
In the field of personal care, cysteine is used for permanent-wave applications, predominantly in Asia. Again, the cysteine is used for breaking up the disulfide bonds in the hair‘s keratin.
Cysteine is a very popular target for site-directed labeling experiments to investigate biomolecular structure and dynamics. Maleimides selectively attach to cysteine using a covalent Michael addition. Site-directed spin labeling for EPR or paramagnetic relaxation-enhanced NMR also uses cysteine extensively.
