---
title: "Acetylation: research glossary | Sable Peptides"
description: "Acetylation is the introduction of an acetyl group into a molecule. In peptide synthesis, N-terminal acetylation caps the free amine, removing its positive"
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---

Glossary

# Acetylation

Acetylation is the introduction of an acetyl group into a molecule. In peptide synthesis, N-terminal acetylation caps the free amine, removing its positive charge and mimicking a common natural protein modification. Acetylation adds 42.01 Da to the monoisotopic mass, which is used to confirm the modification by mass spectrometry, and it can reduce degradation by aminopeptidases.

Source: [en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acetylation)

## Related terms

-   [Peptide](/glossary/peptide)
-   [Monoisotopic mass](/glossary/monoisotopic-mass)
-   [Mass spectrometry](/glossary/mass-spectrometry)

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