What property distinguishes polar amino acids from nonpolar amino acids?
Practice Questions
Q1
What property distinguishes polar amino acids from nonpolar amino acids?
Presence of a carboxyl group
Presence of a hydroxyl or amine group in the side chain
Presence of sulfur in the side chain
Presence of a benzene ring
Questions & Step-by-Step Solutions
What property distinguishes polar amino acids from nonpolar amino acids?
Step 1: Understand that amino acids are the building blocks of proteins.
Step 2: Learn that amino acids have a central carbon atom, an amino group (-NH2), a carboxyl group (-COOH), a hydrogen atom, and a side chain (R group).
Step 3: Identify that the side chain (R group) is what makes each amino acid unique.
Step 4: Recognize that polar amino acids have side chains that contain functional groups like hydroxyl (-OH) or amine (-NH2).
Step 5: Understand that these functional groups make polar amino acids hydrophilic, meaning they can interact well with water.
Step 6: In contrast, nonpolar amino acids have side chains that do not contain these functional groups, making them hydrophobic, or water-repelling.
