Final answer:
Removing the negative charges from ATP's phosphate groups would likely result in cells being unable to use it as an energy currency due to the instability and high-energy bonds being crucial for its energy transfer role. The correct answer is option A.
Step-by-step explanation:
If you modified the structure of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) by removing the negative charges, one of the likely consequences would be that cells would be unable to use ATP as an energy currency. This is because the negative charges on the phosphate groups are crucial for the instability of ATP, which is required for its role in energy transfer. The repulsion between these negatively charged phosphate groups makes ATP inherently unstable, which leads to the release of energy when the bonds are broken during dephosphorylation.
Therefore, in the absence of the negative charges, ATP would not be able to form the high-energy bonds necessary for storing and transferring energy, which would ultimately disrupt many vital cellular processes that depend on ATP hydrolysis. Specifically, if ATP were unable to store and transfer energy, this would prevent the synthesis of new ATP and would likely halt essential biochemical reactions within the cell.