L-Alanine
Compiled from published pharmacological and botanical literature. Not independently verified by Herbuno. Spotted an error or have a correction? Flag it below →
| Compound | L-Alanine (α-alanine) |
|---|---|
| Chemical class | Non-essential α-amino acid — methyl side chain; simplest chiral amino acid |
| CAS | 56-41-7 (L-alanine) · 302-72-7 (DL-alanine) · 107-95-9 (beta-alanine) |
| Molecular weight | 89.09 g/mol |
| Not to be confused with | Beta-alanine — a different compound with a different CAS and role |
| Key applications | Glucose-alanine cycle nitrogen transport, gluconeogenic substrate, sweet taste modifier |
| Claim strength | High for the nitrogen transport biochemistry; no supplementation evidence |
| Buy from Herbuno | L-Alanine 99% Powder · DL-Alanine 98% Powder |
| Origin | Processed / Sourced from India |
| MOQ | R&D 100 g / 250 g (subject to stock) · Pilot batch 1–5 kg · Bulk 10 kg, 25 kg and above |
| Lead Time | Dispatch within 72 hrs from stock · fresh-batch production (typically 50 kg+): 10 working days |
| Documentation | CoA & MSDS standard with every lot |
Name origin: Adolph Strecker synthesised it in 1850 from acetaldehyde and ammonia with hydrogen cyanide — the reaction that still bears his name — and coined "alanine" from aldehyde with an inserted syllable for pronunciation. It is the simplest chiral amino acid, carrying only a methyl side chain, which makes it the reference compound in a great deal of structural and stereochemical work.
The naming problem: The single most important practical fact about L-alanine in a commercial catalogue is that it is not beta-alanine. L-alanine is 2-aminopropanoic acid, the proteinogenic α-amino acid. Beta-alanine is 3-aminopropanoic acid, where the amino group sits on the terminal carbon, making it non-proteinogenic, achiral, and functionally unrelated. Beta-alanine is the rate-limiting precursor of carnosine and the basis of the pre-workout category; L-alanine has no such role. They carry different CAS numbers and should never be substituted for one another.
Biochemical position: L-alanine's principal function is nitrogen transport through the glucose-alanine cycle, sometimes called the Cahill cycle. In working or fasting muscle, amino groups released by branched-chain amino acid catabolism are transaminated onto pyruvate by alanine aminotransferase, producing alanine, which is exported to the liver. There the reaction is reversed, yielding pyruvate for gluconeogenesis and an amino group for urea synthesis. Alanine is therefore the main vehicle by which muscle exports nitrogen safely.
Commercial source: L-alanine is produced by fermentation or by enzymatic decarboxylation of L-aspartic acid using aspartate 4-decarboxylase, the latter being an efficient industrial route. DL-alanine is produced by chemical synthesis and is traded separately, principally as a food taste modifier, where the racemic nature is immaterial because the application is sensory rather than nutritional.
Evidence for L-Alanine Applications
L-alanine is not beta-alanine, and the distinction is the most commercially consequential thing on this page. Beta-alanine's evidence base — muscle carnosine loading over four to ten weeks, improved high-intensity exercise capacity in the 60 to 240 second domain, characteristic paraesthesia at bolus doses — belongs entirely to 3-aminopropanoic acid. L-alanine is a different molecule with a different CAS number and no carnosine-loading role whatsoever. Substitution, whether accidental in procurement or deliberate in a cheap blend, produces a product that cannot work as labelled. Claim strength: High.
The glucose-alanine cycle is settled biochemistry and alanine's genuine physiological role. Alanine aminotransferase in muscle transfers amino groups from branched-chain amino acid catabolism onto pyruvate, generating alanine for export to the liver, where the transamination reverses to supply pyruvate for gluconeogenesis and nitrogen for urea synthesis. This makes alanine the principal carrier of muscle-derived nitrogen and a significant gluconeogenic substrate during fasting and prolonged exercise. Plasma alanine rises measurably in both states. Claim strength: High.
That the cycle exists does not mean supplementing alanine is useful, and the honest position is that there is essentially no supplementation evidence. Alanine is non-essential, synthesised readily from pyruvate, and abundant in dietary protein, so its availability is not a constraint in anyone eating adequately. No controlled trial has demonstrated that supplemental L-alanine improves performance, recovery, glycaemic control or body composition. Its commercial presence rests on its role as a component of complete amino acid profiles and on its sensory properties, not on outcome data. Claim strength: Emerging, and effectively absent.
The sweet taste is a real and under-used formulation asset in a category dominated by bitterness. L-alanine is distinctly sweet, and in Japan and elsewhere it is used as a taste modifier and sweetness contributor in food rather than as a nutrient. In an amino acid or electrolyte blend, alanine and glycine together can carry a meaningful part of the palatability burden and reduce the masking agent load. This is a legitimate functional reason to include it, and is more defensible than any physiological claim. Claim strength: High.
Clinical nutrition and parenteral applications are where alanine appears with purpose. Alanine is a standard component of parenteral amino acid solutions, both as a nitrogen source and, as the alanyl-glutamine dipeptide, as a stable and soluble vehicle for glutamine delivery — free glutamine being unstable in solution and poorly soluble, which the dipeptide resolves. That dipeptide application is a genuine and well-established use of alanine chemistry, distinct from any claim about free alanine itself. Claim strength: High.
Safety is unproblematic. L-alanine is a normal dietary constituent and endogenously synthesised; it is well tolerated at supplemental doses and no tolerable upper intake level has been established. Deficiency does not occur. One analytical note of clinical relevance: alanine aminotransferase is the enzyme measured as ALT in liver function panels, which is a source of occasional confusion — the enzyme is a liver injury marker, and the amino acid has no bearing on it. Claim strength: Moderate.
Sourcing L-alanine from Herbuno. We supply L-alanine at 99% and DL-alanine at 98%.
Confirm which compound your specification means. L-alanine and beta-alanine are different molecules with different CAS numbers and no shared function — beta-alanine is the carnosine precursor behind the pre-workout category, and L-alanine has no such role. We supply beta-alanine separately. For sensory applications DL-alanine is usually the economical choice, since the racemate is immaterial to taste. All lots ship with CoA and MSDS; request a quotation for pilot or bulk volumes.
Dosage & Formulator Specification
L-alanine is dosed as the free amino acid at 99%, with no salt conversion. There is no established requirement, since it is non-essential and synthesised from pyruvate, and no established supplemental dose, since no outcome evidence supports one. In a complete essential and non-essential amino acid blend, alanine is dosed against the target profile. Where it is included for sweetness or mouthfeel, the inclusion is determined by sensory evaluation rather than by a physiological target, and DL-alanine is usually the economical choice for that purpose.
The isomer decision here is unusual in being application-driven rather than nutrition-driven. D-alanine is nutritionally inert in humans, so for any nutritional purpose the L-form is required and DL- delivers roughly half the usable material. But for taste modification the racemate performs comparably at lower cost, because sweetness perception is not stereospecific in the way nutrition is. Specify the form against the intended function, and state it on the purchase specification, since a standard assay will not distinguish them and the price difference creates a substitution incentive.
Handling is easy and favourable. L-alanine is freely soluble in water at around 16 grams per 100 millilitres at room temperature, stable to heat and across a broad pH range, and only mildly hygroscopic. It flows well as a crystalline powder, blends uniformly and is compatible with common excipients. Its sweetness is clean rather than lingering. The amino group participates in Maillard reactions with reducing sugars, and alanine-derived Strecker degradation products contribute characteristic caramel and nutty notes in thermally processed products, which may be desirable or not depending on the format.
Co-formulation is best thought of in sensory and completeness terms rather than mechanistic ones. In electrolyte and amino acid powders, alanine and glycine together reduce the bitterness burden and allow a lower masking agent load, which improves the clean-label position. In clinical nutrition the alanyl-glutamine dipeptide is the established route for delivering glutamine in solution, since free glutamine is poorly soluble and unstable in aqueous storage; that is a dipeptide specification rather than a blend of the two free amino acids, and the two are not interchangeable.
For analytical control, specify identity and assay by HPLC or ion-exchange chromatography with optical rotation confirming configuration and stating whether L- or DL- is required. Critically, specify the compound by CAS number as well as by name, since L-alanine at 56-41-7, DL-alanine at 302-72-7 and beta-alanine at 107-95-9 are routinely conflated in enquiries and occasionally in quotations. Standard coverage includes heavy metals, residual solvents, microbiological limits, loss on drying and sulphated ash, with the production route named — fermentation or enzymatic decarboxylation of L-aspartic acid — and the organism, substrate or enzyme source stated for certification.
On the substitution risk, a note worth building into incoming inspection. Because beta-alanine commands a substantially higher price than L-alanine and both are white crystalline powders of similar appearance, the economic incentive for substitution runs one way and the visual check catches nothing. The two are readily distinguished analytically — beta-alanine is achiral and shows no optical rotation, where L-alanine shows a specific rotation characteristic of the L-form, and the compounds separate cleanly by chromatography. For any incoming beta-alanine lot, optical rotation is a fast and decisive identity confirmation, and it is worth running as standard rather than relying on the certificate alone.
Frequently Asked Questions — L-Alanine
Is L-alanine the same as beta-alanine?
No, and this is the most important thing on the page. L-alanine is 2-aminopropanoic acid, the proteinogenic alpha-amino acid, CAS 56-41-7. Beta-alanine is 3-aminopropanoic acid, CAS 107-95-9, non-proteinogenic and achiral. Beta-alanine is the rate-limiting carnosine precursor behind the pre-workout category. L-alanine has no carnosine-loading role whatsoever.
How do I verify I received the right one?
Optical rotation. Beta-alanine is achiral and shows no rotation; L-alanine shows a specific rotation characteristic of the L-form. They also separate cleanly by chromatography. Since beta-alanine is substantially more expensive and both are white crystalline powders, the substitution incentive runs one way and a visual check catches nothing. Run it as standard.
Is there evidence for supplementing L-alanine?
Essentially none. It is non-essential, readily synthesised from pyruvate and abundant in dietary protein, so availability is not a constraint in anyone eating adequately. No controlled trial shows supplemental L-alanine improves performance, recovery, glycaemic control or body composition. Its commercial presence rests on blend completeness and on taste.
Then why include it at all?
Two legitimate reasons. It is distinctly sweet, and in an amino acid or electrolyte powder alanine and glycine together carry a real part of the palatability burden, cutting the masking agent load — which helps a clean-label position. And it is a standard component of complete amino acid profiles and parenteral solutions.
When is DL-alanine acceptable?
For taste modification, where sweetness perception is not stereospecific and the racemate performs comparably at lower cost. Not for nutritional purposes — D-alanine is nutritionally inert in humans, so DL- delivers roughly half the usable material. Specify the form against the intended function; a standard assay will not distinguish them.
What is alanyl-glutamine?
A dipeptide of alanine and glutamine, used in parenteral nutrition because free glutamine is poorly soluble and unstable in aqueous storage while the dipeptide is both soluble and stable. It is a distinct specification, not a blend of the two free amino acids, and the two are not interchangeable.