Role of solvent properties of water in crowding effects induced by macromolecular agents and osmolytes

Solvent properties of water in aqueous solutions of polyethylene glycols of various molecular weights, l-proline, betaine, and a series of chlorides of varied concentrations are assayed using three solvatochromic dyes. The properties include solvent dipolarity/polarizability, hydrogen bond donor aci...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Molecular bioSystems 2017, Vol.13 (12), p.2551-2563
Main Authors: Ferreira, L A, Uversky, V N, Zaslavsky, B Y
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acidity
Basicity
Betaine
Biological effects
Chemical bonds
Chlorides
Hydrogen
Hydrogen Bonding
Hydrogen bonds
L-Proline
Macromolecular Substances - chemistry
Macromolecules
Nucleic acids
Polarizability
Polyethylene glycol
Polyethylenes
Polymers
Polymers - chemistry
Proline
Properties (attributes)
Proteins
Proteins - chemistry
Solvents
Solvents - chemistry
Water - chemistry
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Summary:Solvent properties of water in aqueous solutions of polyethylene glycols of various molecular weights, l-proline, betaine, and a series of chlorides of varied concentrations are assayed using three solvatochromic dyes. The properties include solvent dipolarity/polarizability, hydrogen bond donor acidity, and hydrogen bond acceptor basicity. These properties are also evaluated in mixtures of two polymers, polymer and osmolyte, and two osmolytes. It is shown that linear combinations of solvent dipolarity/polarizability and hydrogen bond donor acidity assayed in individual solutions of crowders strongly correlate with the effects of the crowders on the stability of various proteins and nucleic acids reported in the literature. The solvent properties of water in aqueous mixtures of two macromolecular crowders, two osmolytes, or mixtures of an osmolyte and a macromolecular crowder vary differently for various solvent properties. The overall effects of the two components in the mixture on a given solvent property of water may be additive, reduced or enhanced depending on the particular composition of the mixture. It is hypothesized that changes in the solvent properties of water are related to changes in the water hydrogen-bonding structuring. It is suggested that the observed crowder-induced changes in the solvent properties of water should be taken into account in theoretical considerations of crowding effects in biological systems.
ISSN:1742-206X
1742-2051
DOI:10.1039/c7mb00436b