Isoelectric Point

The isoelectric point (pI), sometimes abbreviated to IEP, is the pH at which a particular molecule or surface carries no net electrical charge.

Amphoteric molecules called zwitterions contain both positive and negative charges depending on the functional groups present in the molecule. The net charge on the molecule is affected by pH of its surrounding environment and can become more positively or negatively charged due to the loss or gain of protons (H+). The pI is the pH value at which the molecule carries no electrical charge or the negative and positive charges are equal.

Surfaces naturally charge to form a double layer. In the common case when the surface charge-determining ions are H+/OH-, the net surface charge is affected by the pH of the liquid in which the solid is submerged.

The pI value can affect the solubility of a molecule at a given pH. Such molecules have minimum solubility in water or salt solutions at the pH that corresponds to their pI and often precipitate out of solution. Biological amphoteric molecules such as proteins contain both acidic and basic functional groups. Amino acids that make up proteins may be positive, negative, neutral, or polar in nature, and together give a protein its overall charge. At a pH below their pI, proteins carry a net positive charge; above their pI they carry a net negative charge. Proteins can, thus, be separated according to their isoelectric point (overall charge) on a polyacrylamide gel using a technique called isoelectric focusing, which uses a pH gradient to separate proteins. Isoelectric focusing is also the first step in 2-D gel polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis.