Which functional group is responsible for the chirality in amino acids?
Practice Questions
1 question
Q1
Which functional group is responsible for the chirality in amino acids?
Carboxyl group
Amino group
Hydroxyl group
Carbonyl group
The amino group (-NH2) attached to the alpha carbon contributes to the chirality of amino acids.
Questions & Step-by-step Solutions
1 item
Q
Q: Which functional group is responsible for the chirality in amino acids?
Solution: The amino group (-NH2) attached to the alpha carbon contributes to the chirality of amino acids.
Steps: 5
Step 1: Understand what chirality means. Chirality refers to a property of a molecule that makes it non-superimposable on its mirror image, like left and right hands.
Step 2: Identify the structure of an amino acid. An amino acid has a central carbon atom called the alpha carbon.
Step 3: Recognize the groups attached to the alpha carbon. The alpha carbon is attached to four different groups: an amino group (-NH2), a carboxyl group (-COOH), a hydrogen atom (H), and a side chain (R group).
Step 4: Determine which group contributes to chirality. The presence of four different groups attached to the alpha carbon makes it chiral.
Step 5: Conclude that the amino group (-NH2) is one of the groups that helps create chirality in amino acids.
