But they're really just positively-charged cations — like calcium, sodium, and potassium — and negatively-charged anions, like phosphate, sulfate, and bicarbonate.
When energized wires strip negatively charged electrons from the air ionizing the molecules that move toward negatively charged electrodes at the planes tale.
Meanwhile, ion exchangers on the basal surface of the cell move the negatively charged bicarbonate ion into the extracellular space, causing an increase in pH.