Stereoisomers: Difference between revisions
No edit summary |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 7: | Line 7: | ||
Stereoisomers are important in the body as [[Amino acid|amino acids]] can exist as either D or L optical isomers (L is the naturally occuring form). This occurs as all amino acids (apart from glycine) contain 4 different groups bonded to a central chiral carbon<sup>[1]</sup>. Also, due to the high specificity of enzymes, only one isomer is often the target of an enzyme within a specific reaction. | Stereoisomers are important in the body as [[Amino acid|amino acids]] can exist as either D or L optical isomers (L is the naturally occuring form). This occurs as all amino acids (apart from glycine) contain 4 different groups bonded to a central chiral carbon<sup>[1]</sup>. Also, due to the high specificity of enzymes, only one isomer is often the target of an enzyme within a specific reaction. | ||
<references /> | <references /> | ||
<ref>https://www.mun.ca/biology/scarr/Amino_Acid_stereoisomers.html</ref> | |||
<br> | |||
<sup> </sup> | <sup> </sup> | ||
Revision as of 18:59, 30 November 2018
Stereoisomers are molecules which have the same molecular formula, with a different arrangement of atoms in space. There are two types of stereoisomerism, geometric and optical.
Geometric isomers occur when a molecule contains a carbon-carbon double bond, and the rotation of the atoms around this double bond are restricted. This means the molecule can be present in two forms, commonly referred to as E and Z isomers.
Optical isomers occur due to the molecule containing a chiral carbon. This is when a carbon atom within the molecule has 4 different groups bonded to it. The two isomers (or enantiomers) are mirror images of one another, and so cannot be superimposed onto one another. Optical isomers can be distinguished due to their effect on the rotation of plane-polarised light.
Stereoisomers are important in the body as amino acids can exist as either D or L optical isomers (L is the naturally occuring form). This occurs as all amino acids (apart from glycine) contain 4 different groups bonded to a central chiral carbon[1]. Also, due to the high specificity of enzymes, only one isomer is often the target of an enzyme within a specific reaction.