Octopine is a derivative of the amino acids arginine and alanine.

It was the first member of the class of chemical compounds known as opines to be discovered.

[1] Octopine has been isolated from the muscle tissue of invertebrates such as octopus, Pecten maximus and Sipunculus nudus where it functions as an analog of lactic acid.

[3] Octopine is formed by reductive condensation of pyruvic acid and arginine through the action of the NADH-dependent enzyme octopine dehydrogenase (ODH).

[4] The reaction is reversible so that pyruvic acid and arginine can be regenerated.