histidine

[ his-ti-deen, -din ]

noun

, Biochemistry.

1. an essential amino acid, C 3 H 3 N 2 CH 2 CH(NH 2 )COOH, that is a constituent of proteins and is important as the iron-binding site in hemoglobin. : His; : H

histidine

/ ˈhɪstɪˌdiːn; -dɪn /

noun

1. a nonessential amino acid that occurs in most proteins: a precursor of histamine

histidine

/ hĭs′tĭ-dēn′ /

1. An amino acid that is essential for children but not for adults. Chemical formula: C 6 H 9 N 3 O 2 .

Word History and Origins

Origin of histidine¹

First recorded in 1895–1900; hist- + -id ³ + -ine ²

Example Sentences

Notably, the increase in activity was specific to increasing concentrations of ATP or histidine; no changes were observed in response to other nucleotide triphosphates or amino acids.

From Science Daily

The felines showed a particular preference for bowls containing histidine and inosine monophosphate—compounds found at particularly high levels in tuna.

From Science Magazine

The sequencing data revealed a variant that substituted an amino acid called histidine for arginine.

From Scientific American

Me-His is an analogue of histidine in which a methyl group is attached to one of the nitrogen atoms in the side chain.

From Nature

Most actin isoforms are also methylated at a particular histidine amino-acid residue known as His73, which is close to the site to which one of two nucleotides, ATP or ADP, binds.

From Nature