AminoAcetic Acid, AminoEthanoic Acid, GlycoColl
Glycine is a non-polar, hydrophobic, non-essential αamino acid. It is the simplest and smallest amino acid among all the amino acids and is chemically neutral in nature. It is used as a component of many animal and insect cell culture media. Some major functions of Glycine in cell culture involve synthesis of proteins in the cells. Hence it is also called proteinogenic amino acid. It also contributes towards cellular purine synthesis.
Molecular Weight: 75.07
Molecular Formula: C2H5NO2
CAS No.: 56-40-6
Synonym: Aminoacetic acid, Aminoethanoic acid, Glycocoll
Glycine has buffering capacity and hence acts as an osmoprotectant for cells in culture. It participates in majority of anabolic reaction such as synthesis of heme, creatine and glutathione. Besides these, the glycine cleavage pathway is found to be associated with cell proliferation of several human tumor cell lines. Presence of glycine in conditioned medium enhances the growth of mouse and cattle embryos. Since glycine acts as an inhibitory neurotransmitter in brain and spinal cord, it is a prime target of many neuro psycho pharmacologic agents.
