R group:
An abbreviation for any group
in which a carbon or hydrogen atom is attached to the rest of the
molecule.
Sometimes used more loosely, to include other elements such as
halogens, oxygen, or nitrogen. R is an abbreviation for radical,
when the term radical
applied to a portion of a complete molecule
(not necessarily a free
radical), such as a methyl
group. Should not be confused with R (the gas constant), R
(the one-letter abbreviation for the amino
acid
arginine) or R (a designation of absolute
configuration).