nutrient
Valine
A branched-chain essential amino acid with a glucogenic carbon route.
Educational draft · Human scientific and editorial review pending. About review status
Valine is incorporated into proteins and its carbon portion can enter metabolism as succinyl-CoA after breakdown.
How it works
A glucogenic carbon route
Glucogenic means that valine’s carbon portion can form intermediates used in pathways that make glucose; it does not describe an immediate change in blood glucose.
Related topics
Valine is used to build Protein
Valine is one of the amino acids used to assemble proteins.
Evidence: Established · Source checked 2026-09-05 · Sources: NIH National Library of Medicine: Biochemistry, Essential Amino Acids
Worth knowing
It is required from dietary protein. Humans cannot synthesise enough valine and obtain it from dietary protein.
A closer look
Its route differs from other branched-chain amino acids
Leucine, isoleucine and valine share a branched structure but have different carbon-skeleton fates.
Its side chain is hydrophobic
Valine’s branched hydrocarbon side chain commonly contributes to the less polar interior of a folded protein.
References
Source-checked local draft.
Human editorial review pending.
- NIH National Library of Medicine (opens in new tab)Biochemistry, Essential Amino AcidsChecked 2026-09-05
- NIH National Library of Medicine (opens in new tab)Biochemistry, Protein CatabolismChecked 2026-09-05
- NIH National Library of Medicine (opens in new tab)Biochemistry, Primary Protein StructureChecked 2026-09-05
Take it into the kitchen
Explore this nutrient in simple meals. Recipe pages show estimated amounts and missing data.
Chicken corn tortilla fold · 20 min →
Pineapple cashew chicken pan · 25 min →
Coconut ginger chicken rice · 25 min →
Compare meals by valine →