= Thioester
A <thioester> contains the linkage $\mathrm{R-C(=O)-S-R'}$, in which <sulfur> replaces the single-bonded <oxygen> of an ordinary <ester>. It is an <acyl group> joined to a sulfur-containing substituent; it is not the same structural class as a compound with a C=S double bond.
<Coenzyme A> carries acyl groups through a <thioester> linkage. Nucleophilic attack at the carbonyl carbon can transfer the <acyl group>, coupling chemical transformations through an activated carrier. The familiar usefulness of this linkage concerns the free-energy change of the overall transfer or <hydrolysis> reaction, rather than an isolated “high-energy bond” acting as a store of released energy when simply broken.
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