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What is the purpose of the r group in an amino acid monomer ?

User Baldpate
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Answer:

An amino acid can be described as a macromolecule consisting of an amino group, carboxyl group and an R- group.

The R-group determines the specificity of each amino acid. The size, polarity, pH, temperature, function etc of an amino acid are all dependent on this unique R group.

Structurally, the R group is present as a side chain which determines all the chemical properties for that amino acid. The R group is also termed as a variable group.

User OBu
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