Aspartame is a dipeptide obtained by formal condensation of the alpha-carboxy group of L-aspartic acid with the amino group of methyl L-phenylalaninate. Commonly used as an artificial sweetener. It has a role as a sweetening agent, a nutraceutical, a micronutrient, a xenobiotic, an environmental contaminant, an apoptosis inhibitor and an EC 3.1.3.1 (alkaline phosphatase) inhibitor. It is a dipeptide, a carboxylic acid and a methyl ester. It derives from a L-aspartic acid and a methyl L-phenylalaninate.