What is the effect of cellular pH on amino/polypeptide chains?

### The amino group on an amino acid gains a positive charge and the carboxyl group gains a negative charge. (zwitterion)

## Step1: Understanding the Structure of Amino Acids### Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins and they have a basic structure that includes an amino group (-NH2), a carboxyl group (-COOH), and a side chain (R group). The amino group is basic and the carboxyl group is acidic.## Step2: Effect of pH on Amino Acids### The pH of a solution affects the ionization state of the amino acids. In a neutral pH environment, the amino group is protonated (-NH3+) and the carboxyl group is deprotonated (-COO-). However, when the pH is altered, the amino group can lose a proton and gain a negative charge, becoming -NH2, while the carboxyl group can gain a proton and gain a positive charge, becoming -COOH.## Step3: Formation of Zwitterion### When the pH is neutral, the amino acid exists as a zwitterion, which is a dipolar ion with both a positive and a negative charge. The amino group loses a proton and becomes -NH2, and the carboxyl group gains a proton and becomes -COOH. This results in the amino acid having both a positive and a negative charge, making it a zwitterion.