glutamic acid

noun

glu·​tam·​ic acid (ˌ)glü-ˈta-mik- 

: a crystalline amino acid C₅H₉NO₄ widely distributed in plant and animal proteins

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

The sauce proved to be a protein bomb, especially rich in glutamic acid, the same amino acid that gives Parmesan cheese, tamari sauce and cooked mushrooms their savory, umami intensity. —Taras Grescoe, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Oct. 2021

In vitro binding of heavy metals by an edible biopolymer poly(γ-glutamic acid). —Alice Chi Phung, Discover Magazine, 2 Feb. 2016

Around that same time, Saburosuke Suzuki II started a company specializing in monosodium glutamate , which is the sodium salt of glutamic acid. —Allison Futterman, Discover Magazine, 22 June 2022

Despite their different names, glutamate, glutamic acid, and monosodium glutamate are essentially the same molecule and behave the same way in our bodies. —Liz Roth-johnson, Discover Magazine, 2 July 2013

An enzyme called glutamic acid decarboxylase, or GAD, helps convert a neurotransmitter – a chemical that nerve cells use to communicate – called glutamate to gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA. —Bhavana Patel, The Conversation, 21 Dec. 2022

The condition is linked to higher levels of antibodies that bind to an enzyme called glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD), which works on a brain chemical, GABA, responsible for inhibiting activity in the central nervous system. —Alice Park, Time, 9 Dec. 2022

Some with the syndrome have higher levels of antibodies to an enzyme called glutamic acid decarboxylase, or GAD65. —Margaret Osborne, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 Dec. 2022

This contains black rice which is an amazing source of glutamic acid, a key amino acid lost when hair is damaged. —Sam Neibart, Harper's BAZAAR, 23 June 2022

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Word History

Etymology

International Scientific Vocabulary gluten + amino + -ic

First Known Use

1871, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

glutamic acid

noun

glu·​tam·​ic acid (ˌ)glü-ˌtam-ik- 

: an amino acid found in many plant and animal proteins and used in the form of a sodium salt as a seasoning

Medical Definition

glutamic acid

noun

glu·​tam·​ic acid (ˌ)glü-ˌtam-ik- 

: a crystalline amino acid C₅H₉NO₄ that is widely distributed in plant and animal proteins and that acts throughout the central nervous system especially in the form of a salt or ester as a neurotransmitter which excites postsynaptic neurons

—abbreviation Glu