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Tyrosine is one of the non-essential amino acids. L-tyrosine is traditionally made use of in the process of protein synthesis. It is a nonessential amino acid which means that the body alone can manufacture large enough amounts of it that it need not be supplemented through dietary means. Tyrosine may also be used to form neurotransmitters that feed directly into the brain which scientists have determined may have an effect on cognitive abilities. Tyrosine is also a precursor that eventually becomes, through a process of synthesis, at least one of a few different hormones which is essential to bodily and mental development. Melanin, a chemical which determines the pigmentation of skin and the degree to which harmful sunÆs rays can penetrate the skin, also needs tyrosine in order to be correctly manufactured. Tyrosine is more integral to the body than most would imagine, and when there is a deficiency of tyrosine in the body it shows through in many different and frightening ways, some of these including general weakness and fatigue, decreased protein levels, decrease in muscle mass, as well as possibly irreversible damage to the liver. While tyrosine may be considered nonessential and does not need to be supplemented through diet, this does not mean that it canÆt be found through dietary means. On the contrary, there are many dietary sources that tyrosine may be derived from such as almonds, pumpkin seeds, many different types of dairy, bananas, lima beans, and sesame seeds. Tyrosine is a precursor to the very important neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine. Tyrosine may also have an effect on the level of mental cognition that a person can reach, not to mention the fact that it can also reduce the level of physical fatigue resulting at the end of a long difficult exercise regimen. Tyrosine is needed to establish ambulatory actions. On top of that, tyrosine also protects healthy cells from free radicals by acting as an antioxidant.