A chemical reaction where
aminos,
carbohydrates, and
lipids combine into
polymer chains. As an
example:
Your standard amino acid has two main functional groups:
When two
amino acids attach to each other, the resulting linkage causes an (OH) to detach from the
carboxyl group, and an (H) to attach from the
amino group. When these two are combined, they form (H
2O), also known as water.
Therefore, the process is called
dehydration synthesis, because:
The reverse/inverse of dehydration synthesis is hydrolysis.