Amino acids are the building block and simplest unit of protein molecules. The structural composition of each amino acids is made up of an amine group (-NH2), a carboxylic acid group (-COOH), a hydrogen atom (H) and a R side chain that differentiates every amino acid from one another.
In a reaction process called condensation, amino acids are chemically joined together via the amine group of one and the carboxylic group of another. This process releases water molecule (H20) to form a bond called PEPTIDE bond between the amino acids. Several amino acids in their 100’s or 1000’s that are chemically joined this way forms a POLYPEPTIDE chain, which in turn forms the protein molecule.
