Transaminase biochemistry

The transaminases are enzymes that catalyze chemical reactions in the body in which an amino group is transferred from a donor molecule to a recipient molecule.

Hence, the name 'transferase' can be applied to the transaminases because these enzymes facilitate a molecular transfer, specifically, of an amino group.

The donor molecule is usually an amino acid while the recipient is an alpha-2 keto acid.

(For example, a transaminase named 'aspartate amino transferase' catalyses the reaction: aspartate + ketoglutarate = oxaloacetate + glutamate).