acetylamino

Acetylamino refers to a functional group in which an amino group has been acetylated, forming the acetamido group (-NH-CO-CH3) when attached to a molecule. In systematic naming, the substituent is often described as acetamido or as an N-acetyl derivative, depending on the attachment point. As an amide, the acetylamino group features a carbonyl carbon of an acetyl moiety linked to nitrogen, which reduces the nitrogen’s basicity and stabilizes through resonance with the carbonyl.

In practice, acetylation is a common protective strategy in organic synthesis and a way to modulate the properties of amines. In biochemistry, N-acetylation is widespread; the acetyl group can block the amino terminus of peptides and proteins, producing N-acetyl derivatives such as N-acetyl peptides. The class of compounds containing the acetylamino group includes several notable examples, such as acetanilide, where the amino group of aniline is acetylated to form an acetamide linkage, and N-acetylcysteine, a clinically used drug in which the amino group of cysteine is acetylated.

Naming conventions: compounds with this group may be described as acetamides when the acetyl group is directly attached to a nitrogen bearing hydrogens, or as N-acetyl derivatives when the acetyl group attaches to nitrogen in larger molecules. Related groups include the broader amide family and other acylamino groups derived from different acyl donors.