At pH7, charged or polar molecules will charge or polarize. Based
on what properties could I predict its behavior? For ex., lysine will be charged because
NH2 will pick up a H+. Will glutamine be charged? The NH2 group and the O will not pick up
any H+? How can I predict if either group will pick up a H+ or not?
You just have to memorize the properties of the functional groups as to their acidity or
basicity: R-COOH groups are the only organic groups that we talk about that lose a proton
and so become negatively charged, and amines take on a proton and become postively
charged. Amines include R-NH2 and the guanido group of arginine, R--NH-CNH-NH2, but NOT
the -NH2 of amides, R-CO-NH2. Thus glutamine, asparagne, and the peptide bonds in
polypeptides do NOT gain a full charge. You can figure out polarity if you remember that O
and N are more electronegative than H or C, so those combinations will result in partial
charge separations and polarity.