Carboxylic acid Carboxylic acid A carboxylic acid is an organic compound that contains a carboxyl group (C(=O)OH). The general formula of a carboxylic acid is R–COOH, with R referring to the rest of the (possibly quite large) molecule. Carboxylic acids occur widely and include the amino acids (which make up proteins) and acetic acid (which is part of vinegar and occurs in metabolism). Salts and esters of carboxylic acids are called carboxylates. When a carboxyl group is deprotonated, its conjugate base forms a carboxylate anion. Carboxylate ions are resonance-stabilized, and this increased stability makes carboxylic acids more acidic than alcohols, along with
Organic compound of "organic compound" is any compound that contains a significant amount of carbon—even though many of the organic compounds known today have no connection to any substance found in living organisms. The term "carbogenic" has been proposed by E. J. Corey as a modern alternative to "organic", but this neologism remains relatively obscure. The organic compound -isoleucine molecule presents some features typical of organic compounds: carbon–carbon bonds, carbon–hydrogen bonds, as well as covalent bonds from carbon to oxygen and to nitrogen. As described in detail below, any definition of organic compound that uses simple, broadly applicable criteria turns out to