How to know which situation to bypass the apostrophe ?

Question

Hi,I'm preparing for TOEFL iBT very soon and I learned that it's better to avoid contractions in the formal writing.I searched in google about this topic and found this post which is nice but the author provided two similar examples with different results to not use the apostrophe in possessive formats.This is the link and I'm also copying the examples here.https://redwoodink.com/resources/when-to-use-apostrophes-in-formal-writingHere's two examples where:1. The first one changed the position of the noun and the adjective.2. Just removed the apostrophe. Informal: The mutation changed the protein’s structure.Formal: The mutation changed the structure of the protein.Informal: The protein moved to the cell’s nucleus.Formal: The protein moved to the cell nucleus. I have another question:protein’s structureI know based on the example sentence that "protein" is the subject. But I'm not sure what "structure" is ? Is it the adjective or the object ?

AlpheccaStars · Accepted Answer

r1s8kI'm preparing for TOEFL iBT very soon and I learned that it's better to avoid contractions in the formal writing.

Yes, that is true. (formal)

Yes, that's true. (casual, informal)

r1s8k1. The first one changed the position of the noun and the adjective.

The apostrophe is used for possessive in addition to indicating missing letters (contractions.) These examples are about possessives, not contractions.

Informal: The mutation changed the protein’s structure.
Formal: The mutation changed the structure of the protein.

You have a choice to use the prepositional phrase "of" or the apostrophe.

There is no set rule, but for inanimate objects, using "of" is generally better and more formal.

For people, it is not good.

The man's coat was unbuttoned. (good).
The coat of the man was unbuttoned. (awkward, unnatural)

Using a noun adjunct (modifier) is also better for certain collocations, especially when the words are very closely related. These three forms are grammatical, but have a distinct usage preference.

The cell membrane is permeable. (preferred - noun adjunct)
The cell's membrane is permeable. (odd)
The membrane of the cell is permeable. (unnatural)

r1s8kBut I'm not sure what "structure" is ? Is it the adjective or the object ?

The mutation changed the structure of the protein.

Structure is the direct object of the verb change.

r1s8kInformal: The mutation changed the protein’s structure.

Structure is the direct object of the verb change.
Protein's is a determiner, modifying structure.

How to know which situation to bypass the apostrophe ?

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