D-amino acids in nature, agriculture and biomedicine

ABSTRACT

Information accumulated over the past decades on the physiological functions and metabolic pathways of biosynthesis and degradation of D-amino acids has led to a renewed interest in their study. These isomers are known to form both in nature and during the chemical synthesis of L-amino acids for feeding and pharmacological purposes, as well as in the industrial processing of some raw materials. This article discusses the positive and negative effects of D-amino acids on the human body, animals and the environment. In addition, the scientific data concerning the mechanisms of cytotoxic action of D-amino acids and their industrial and biomedical potential are summarized.

KEYWORDS:

• L
• D-amino acids
• peptides
• biochemistry
• stereoisomerism
• biomedicine
• agriculture

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Russian Science Foundation under grant number 16-16-04086.