eli5: Non-essential aminoacids are the ones your body can synthesize on its own. Does that mean the body can convert carbs and fats into aminoacids?

Question

Your body needs aminoacids to build proteins. Some are essential, some are not, meaning the body can make them on its own. What does it make them out of?

In: Biology

Answer 1

Other amino acids. We have enzymes that can transform other similar amino acids into those non essential ones. Non essential amino acids we must get in the diet because we lack a way to convert other amino acids into them.

Amino acids themselves contain Nitrogen which carbs and fat lack so we can’t use them