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The term is sometimes used interchangeably with the term “tryptophan” and abbreviated “Trp” or “W.” l-Tryptophan is one of nine essential amino acids available in most protein-based foods. Essential amino acids must be derived from food or supplements. Nonessential amino acids can be synthesized from essential or other nonessential amino acids. During digestion, l-Tryptophan is broken down by intestinal bacteria that cause the odor associated with fecal material. The l-isomer from tryptophan contains the organic structural heterocyclic, indole, distinguishing it from tryptophan’s d-isomer. The l-isomer comprises the structure of the protein (IUPAC-IUB-JCBN, 1983; l-Tryptophan, 2009).
l-Tryptophan can be synthetically and organically derived. Synthetically, it is formulated from the bacterium, Escherichia coli, and the fermentation of serine, a nonessential organic polar amino acid, and indole....
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Sanzone, M. (2011). l-Tryptophan. In: Kreutzer, J.S., DeLuca, J., Caplan, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-79948-3_1666
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