| Abstract: | The interaction of α-poly-L -lysine and ε-poly-L -lysine with methyl and ethyl orange was studied by equilibrium dialysis and spectroscopic methods. The results of the dialysis measurements indicated that the extent of binding by ε-polypeptide is substantially higher than that by α-polypeptide, despite the much greater molecular weight of the latter. This difference in binding affinity was interpreted in terms of the increased conformational adaptability of ε-polypeptide because of its highly flexible structure. Furthermore, ε-polypeptide exhibited strong cooperative binding. In addition, the effect of the successive addition of α- and ε-polypeptides on the absorption spectra of methyl and ethyl orange was investigated. The addition of α-polypeptide with a molecular weight of 400,000 produced a new absorption peak at a shorter wavelength, due to the stacked dye molecules on the polypeptide chain, whereas that of ε-polypeptide did not. From the results of spectroscopic measurements a possible mode of interaction between these two polypeptides and the small molecule is discussed. |
