Folding control and unfolding free energy of yeast iso-1-cytochrome c bound to layered zirconium phosphate materials monitored by surface plasmon resonance

The free energy change (Delta G degrees ) for the unfolding of immobilized yeast iso-1-cytochrome c (Cyt c) at nanoassemblies was measured by surface plasmon resonance (SPR) spectroscopy. Data show that SPR is sensitive to protein conformational changes, and protein solid interface exerts a major influence on bound protein stability. First, Cyt c was self-assembled on the Au film via the single thiol of Cys-102. Then, crystalline sheets of layered alpha-Zr(O(3)POH)(2).H(2)O (alpha-ZrP) or Zr(O(3)PCH(2)CH(2)COOH)(2).xH(2)O (alpha-ZrCEP) were adsorbed to construct alpha-ZrP/Cyt c/Au or alpha-ZrCEP/Cyt c/Au nanoassemblies. The construction of each layer was monitored by SPR, in real time, and the assemblies were further characterized by atomic force microscopy and electrochemical studies. Thermodynamic stability of the protein nanoassembly was assessed by urea-induced unfolding. Surprisingly, unfolding is reversible in all cases studied here. Stability of Cyt c in alpha-ZrP/Cyt c/Au increased by approximately 4.3 kJ/mol when compared to the unfolding free energy of Cyt c/Au assembly. In contrast, the protein stability decreased by approximately 1.5 kJ/mol for alpha-ZrCEP/Cyt c/Au layer. Thus, OH-decorated surfaces stabilized the protein whereas COOH-decorated surfaces destabilized it. These data quantitate the role of specific functional groups of the inorganic layers in controlling bound protein stability.     

QCM and EC-SPR Studies of Cytochrome cSelf-assembled on Au Electrode and Enhancement of SPR Signal by Au Nanoparticles

Quartz crystal microbalance(QCM) and cyclic voltammetry(CV) were used to characterize the monolayer of cytochrome c(Cyt c), which was adsorbed on gold film modified with alkanethiol mixed monolayer. A direct comparison of protein surface coverages calculated from QCM and cyclic voltammetric measurements illustrates that the ratio of the electroactive Cyt c to the total surface-confined Cyt cis 34%, which suggests that the orientation is a main factor affecting the electroactivity of Cyt c. Moreover, surface plasmon resonance(SPR) measurement combined with CV “in situ” was used to investigate the conformational change of Cyt c in the redox process. Besides, Au nanoparticles(Au NPs) were adsorbed on the surface of Cyt c. The result indicates that Au NPs promote electron transfer between Cyt c and the gold electrode, and SPR result suggests Au NPs enhance SPR signal.     

Conformational dynamics of poly(acrylic acid). A study using surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy

The conformational dynamics of poly(acrylic acid) induced by pH change is reported here. Poly(acrylic acid) immobilized on gold surface was exposed to pH changes, and the conformational changes thus induced were followed in real time using surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy. The temporal profile of the stretching-coiling phenomenon showed a minimum point, which was proposed to be arising due to the contradictory behavior of two different property changes in the polymeric system. Normally surface plasmon resonance (SPR) response would be a convoluted effect of the thickness and refractive index changes, but the behavior observed here, where the SPR response is predominantly governed by either one of the two, is unique and to the author's knowledge is a feature that is observed for the first time. Analysis of the kinetics of the angle change revealed that it takes longer for the polymer to stretch than it takes for it to collapse, with the kinetic rate constants varying by at least an order of magnitude. The SPR angle change as well as the kinetic constants increased linearly with molecular weight. Effect of Ca2+ was studied, and it was found that the polymer was locked in its conformation due to the binding of the multivalent cations.     

Surface plasmon resonance biosensor based on Au nanoparticle in titania sol–gel membrane

A novel surface plasmon resonance (SPR) biosensor for the determination of human IgG was introduced. The biosensor was prepared with three layers of titania sol–gel membrane by vapor deposition. The colloid Au nanoparticle (AuNP) was immobilized in the second layer of titania membrane and the AuNP coupled with rabbit anti-human IgG was encapsulated in the third layer. The AuNP in the second layer of titania membrane was proved to be effective in the sensitivity enhancement of SPR biosensor. The lowest concentration that could be detected obtained by the biosensor with AuNP is about eight times lower than that obtained without AuNP. In addition, the titania sol–gel is a porous homogeneous material that permits analytes to access the encapsulated biomolecule and can provide a controlled environment for the study of biomolecular recognition. The titania sol–gel was also confirmed to be benefit for biomolecule to keep bioactivity, which could offer a good waterish microenvironment. As a result, the modified biosensor exhibits a satisfactory response for human IgG in the concentration range of 0.30–40.00 μg mL^?1 and shows favorable bioactivity for a long time.     

Gold nanoparticles as a colorimetric sensor for protein conformational changes

Spherical gold nanoparticles and flat gold films are prepared in which yeast iso-1-cytochrome c (Cyt c) is covalently bound to the gold surface by a thiol group in the cystein 102 residue. Upon exposure to solutions of different pH, bound Cyt c unfolds at low pH and refolds at high pH. This conformational change causes measurable shifts in the color of the coated nanoparticle solutions detected by UV-VIS absorption spectroscopy and in the refractive index (RI) of the flat gold films detected by surface plasmon resonance (SPR) spectroscopy. Both experiments demonstrate the same trend with pH, suggesting the use of protein-covered gold nanoparticles as a simple colorimetric sensor for conformational change.     

金纳米粒子比色测定细胞色素c构象变化

金纳米粒子(AuNPs)的颜色会随着细胞色素c(Cytc)构象变化而发生较大的变化,作者在改变原测定流程的基础上利用这种有规律的变化研究和测定了H+和L-半胱氨酸(L-Cys)对Cytc的构象变化.实验中分别加入pH=1-13的Cytc,可以使AuNPs显示青、蓝、紫、红等明显不同的颜色,从而可以利用AuNPs比色快速测定不同pH值的Cytc构象变化.在pH=7时,当附加L-Cys浓度从低浓度变化到高浓度时,AuNPs颜色逐渐从紫色变化到蓝色、青色,从而实现利用AuNPs比色测定由L-Cys所引起Cytc构象变化.圆二色(CD)光谱证实了pH=1-13和不同浓度L-Cys下的Cytc构象变化.借助紫外-可见吸收光谱和扫描电子显微镜(SEM)进一步明确了加入Cytc后AuNPs的不同聚集状态与其颜色变化的关系.     

Au NPs-aptamer conjugates as a powerful competitive reagent for ultrasensitive detection of small molecules by surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy

Features of Au NPs-aptamer conjugates as a powerful competitive reagent to substitute antibody in enhancing surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy (SPR) signal for the detection of small molecule are explored for the first time. In order to evaluate the sensing ability of Au NPs-aptamer conjugates as a competitive reagent, a novel SPR sensor based on indirect competitive inhibition assay (ICIA) for the detection of adenosine is constructed by employing the competitive reaction between antiadenosine aptamer with adenosine and antiadenosine aptamer with its partial complementary ss-DNA. The partial complementary ss-DNA of antiadenosine aptamer is firstly immobilized on SPR gold film as sensing surface. When the Au NPs-antiadenosine aptamer conjugates solution is added to SPR cell in the absence of adenosine, Au NPs-antiadenosine aptamer conjugates is adsorbed to SPR sensor by the DNA hybridization reaction, and results in a large change of SPR signal. However, the change of SPR signal is decreased when the mixing solution of adenosine with Au NPs-antiadenosine aptamer conjugates is added. This is because adenosine reacts with antiadenosine aptamer in Au NPs-antiadenosine aptamer conjugates and changes its structure from ss-DNA to tertiary structure, which cannot hybridize with its partial complementary ss-DNA immobilized on SPR gold surface. Based on this principle, a SPR sensor for indirect detection of adenosine can be developed. The experimental results confirm that the SPR sensor possesses a good sensitivity and a high selectivity for adenosine, which indirectly confirms that Au NPs-aptamer conjugates is a powerful competitive reagent. More significantly, it can be used to develop other SPR sensors based on ICIA to detect different targets by changing the corresponding type of aptamer in Au NPs-aptamer conjugates.     

Probing protein adsorption onto mercaptoundecanoic acid stabilized gold nanoparticles and surfaces by quartz crystal microbalance and zeta-potential measurements

The adsorption characteristics of three proteins [bovine serum albumin (BSA), myoglobin (Mb), and cytochrome c (CytC)] onto self-assembled monolayers of mercaptoundecanoic acid (MUA) on both gold nanoparticles (AuNP) and gold surfaces (Au) are described. The combination of quartz crystal microbalance measurements with dissipation (QCM-D) and pH titrations of the zeta-potential provide information on layer structure, surface coverage, and potential. All three proteins formed adsorption layers consisting of an irreversibly adsorbed fraction and a reversibly adsorbed fraction. BSA showed the highest affinity for the MUA/Au, forming an irreversibly adsorbed rigid monolayer with a side-down orientation and packing close to that expected in the jamming limit. In addition, BSA showed a large change in the adsorbed mass due to reversibly bound protein. The data indicate that the irreversibly adsorbed fraction of CytC is a monolayer structure, whereas the irreversibly adsorbed Mb is present in form of a bilayer. The observation of stable BSA complexes on MUA/AuNPs at the isoelectric point by zeta-potential measurements demonstrates that BSA can sterically stabilize MUA/AuNP. On the other hand, MUA/AuNP coated with either Mb or CytC formed a reversible flocculated state at the isoelectric point. The colloidal stability differences may be correlated with weaker binding in the reversibly bound overlayer in the case of Mb and CytC as compared to BSA.     

The characterization of biomolecular secondary structures by surface plasmon resonance

Recently there has been considerable interest in using surface plasmon resonance (SPR) for the measurement of conformational changes of immobilized biomolecules that are induced by an exogenous analyte. While a number of studies have shown the analytical utility of such measurements, there has been no report which characterizes the specific secondary structure that actuates the change in SPR signal. The use of SPR to indicate the type of secondary structure present in two immobilized polypeptides, poly-L-lysine (PL) and poly-L-glutamic acid (PGA), and a globular protein, concanavalin A (Con A) is described in this report. The PL, PGA and Con A were modified with N-succinimidyl 3-(2-pyridyldithiol) propionate (SPDP) to introduce disulfide groups to facilitate the attachment onto gold-coated surfaces via self-assembly. Ethanol and 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol (TFE) were used to induce changes in the secondary structure of the immobilized polypeptides and the protein respectively. Using both circular dichroism (CD) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopies, it has been demonstrated that it is possible to correlate the signal changes observed in SPR to the secondary conformation of the biomolecule. Both CD and FTIR showed that a decrease in SPR signal corresponded to a high content of beta, turn or unordered structures while an increase corresponded to a high alpha-helical content. The sensitivity of the SPR technique is comparable to that obtained in solution with CD and FTIR spectroscopies. These results are the first demonstration that SPR can be used to characterize secondary structures. There is potential, therefore, for SPR to be used as a technique to study secondary conformational changes of immobilized polypeptides and proteins.     

pH dependence of the kinetics of interfacial tension changes during protein adsorption from sessile droplets on FEP-Teflon

Interfacial tension changes during protein adsorption at both the solid-liquid and the liquid-vapor interface were measured simultaneously by ADSA-P from sessile droplets of protein solutions on fluoroethylenepropylene-Teflon. Four globular proteins of similar size, viz. lysozyme, ribonuclease, -lactalbumin and Ca²⁺-free -lactalbumin, and one larger protein, serum albumin, were adsorbed from phosphate solutions at varying pH values (pH 3-12). The kinetics of the interfacial tension changes were described using a model accounting for diffusion-controlled adsorption of protein molecules and conformational changes of already adsorbed molecules. The contribution of conformational changes to the equilibrium interfacial pressure was shown to be relatively small and constant with respect to pH when compared to the contribution of adsorption of the protein molecules. The model also yields the diffusion relaxation time and the rate constant for the conformational changes at the interface. Around the isoelectric point of a protein the calculated diffusion relaxation time was minimal, which is ascribed to the absence of an energy barrier to adsorption. Energy barriers to adsorption become larger at pH values away from the isoelectric point and can therefore become rate-limiting for the adsorption process. The rate constants for conformational changes at the liquid-vapor interface were maximal around the isoelectric point of a protein, suggesting a smaller structural stability of the adsorbed protein. At the solid-liquid interface the rate constants were smaller and independent of pH. indicating that conformational changes more readily occur at the liquid-vapor than at the solid-liquid interface.     

Subtle pH differences trigger single residue motions for moderating conformations of calmodulin

This study reveals the essence of ligand recognition mechanisms by which calmodulin (CaM) controls a variety of Ca(2+) signaling processes. We study eight forms of calcium-loaded CaM each with distinct conformational states. Reducing the structure to two degrees of freedom conveniently describes main features of the conformational changes of CaM via simultaneous twist-bend motions of the two lobes. We utilize perturbation-response scanning (PRS) technique, coupled with molecular dynamics simulations. PRS is based on linear response theory, comprising sequential application of directed forces on selected residues followed by recording the resulting protein coordinates. We analyze directional preferences of the perturbations and resulting conformational changes. Manipulation of a single residue reproduces the structural change more effectively than that of single/pairs/triplets of collective modes of motion. Our findings also give information on how the flexible linker acts as a transducer of binding information to distant parts of the protein. Furthermore, by perturbing residue E31 located in one of the EF hand motifs in a specific direction, it is possible to induce conformational change relevant to five target structures. Independently, using four different pK(a) calculation strategies, we find this particular residue to be the charged residue (out of a total of 52), whose ionization state is most sensitive to subtle pH variations in the physiological range. It is plausible that at relatively low pH, CaM structure is less flexible. By gaining charged states at specific sites at a pH value around 7, such as E31 found in the present study, local conformational changes in the protein will lead to shifts in the energy landscape, paving the way to other conformational states. These findings are in accordance with Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) measured shifts in conformational distributions towards more compact forms with decreased pH. They also corroborate mutational studies and proteolysis results which point to the significant role of E31 in CaM dynamics.     

A Au nanoparticle and polydopamine co-modified biosensor: A strategy for in situ and label-free surface plasmon resonance immunoassays

This article reports a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) strategy capable of label-free yet amplified in situ immunoassays for sensitive and specific detection of human IgG (hIgG), a serum marker that is important for the diagnosis of certain diseases. Primarily, a wavelength-modulated Kretschman configuration SPR analyzer was constructed, and Au film SPR biosensor chips were fabricated. Specifically, based on Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) adsorbed on the surface of the Au film, the AuNP/Au film was coated with polydopamine (PDA) to fix streptavidin (SA), and then the biotinylated antibodies were connected to the surface of the biosensor chip. The SPR analyzer was utilized for in situ real-time monitoring of hIgG. Due to the immunological recognition between the receptor and target, the surface plasmon waves produced by the attenuated total reflection were affected by the changes in the surface of the biosensor chip. The resonance wavelength (λ_R) of the output spectra gradually redshifted, and the redshift degrees were directly related to the target concentration. The biosensor can realize the in situ detection of hIgG, displaying satisfactory sensitivity, excellent specificity and stability. Briefly, by monitoring the shift in λ_R after specific binding, a new SPR immunoassay can be customized for label-free, in situ and amplified hIgG detection. The operating principle of this research could be extended as a common protocol for many other targets of interest.     

pH-induced intramolecular folding dynamics of i-motif DNA

Using the combination of fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) technique, we investigate the mechanism and dynamics of the pH-induced conformational change of i-motif DNA in the bulk phases and at the single-molecule level. Despite numerous studies on i-motif that is formed from cytosine (C)-rich strand at slightly acidic pH, its detailed conformational dynamics have been rarely reported. Using the FRET technique to provide valuable information on the structure of biomolecules such as a protein and DNA, we clearly show that the partially folded species as well as the single-stranded structure coexist at neutral pH, supporting that the partially folded species may exist substantially in vivo and play an important role in a process of gene expression. By measuring the FCS curves of i-motif, we observed the gradual decrease of the diffusion coefficient of i-motif with increasing pH. The quantitative analysis of FCS curves supports that the gradual decrease of diffusion coefficient (D) associated with the conformational change of i-motif is not only due to the change in the intermolecular interaction between i-motif and solvent accompanied by the increase of pH but also due to the change of the shape of DNA. Furthermore, FCS analysis showed that the intrachain contact formation and dissociation for i-motif are 5-10 times faster than that for the open form. The fast dynamics of i-motif with a compact tetraplex is due to the intrinsic conformational changes at the fluorescent site including the motion of alkyl chain connecting the dye to DNA, whereas the slow intrachain contact formation observed from the open form is due to the DNA motion corresponding to an early stage interaction in the folding process of the unstructured open form.     

Triggering blue-red transition response in polydiacetylene vesicles: an electrochemical surface plasmon resonance method

Electrochemical surface plasmon resonance (E-SPR) was used to investigate whether the chromic properties of a polydiacetylene (PDA) vesicle films, adsorbed onto an ultra-thin gold electrode, could be triggered by applied potential. This approach constitutes a preliminary model for a novel approach to the use of a triggered chromic transition, as an indicator of biorecognition headgroup binding in these materials. A PDA chromic blue-red transition was identified in E-SPR against the background Deltaepsilon(e) and Deltaepsilon(m). The latter resulted in a ca. 100 mDeg V(-1) shift in the SPR minimum, in the presence of PDA, with the PDA shielding changes in epsilon(e). Electrochemical charge transfer processes in the pre-oxide/oxide anodic region with adsorbed oxygen and hydroxide, involving a change in Au redox state (Au(0)/Au(+)) were visible in the SPR, due to a change in the gold layer thickness and gold oxide layer. However, the cathodic processes, not involving a change in the Au redox state or a increase/decrease in the surface layer dielectric, did not cause a change in the SPR. Based on this, dramatic changes in the optical properties of the adsorbed PDA film could be triggered at an applied cathodic potential, and were identified using SPR. These correlated with a pH-induced chromic transition. Both protonation and ion binding, linked with headgroup environment, were implicated in causing structural transitions in the adsorbed vesicle layer that may also be linked with their bulk optical properties.     

A Colloidal Au Monolayer Modulates the Conformation and Orientation of a Protein at the Electrode/Solution Interface

The orientation and conformation of adsorbed cytochrome c (cyt c) at the interface between an electrode modified with colloidal Au and a solution were studied by electrochemical, spectroscopic, and spectroelectrochemical techniques. The results indicate that the colloidal Au monolayer formed via preformation of an organic self‐assembled monolayer (SAM) can increase the electronic coupling between the SAM and cyt c in the same manner as bifunctional molecular bridges, one functional group of which is bound to the electrode surface while the other interacts with the protein surface. The approach of cyt c to the modified electrode/solution interface can be assisted by strong interactions of the intrinsic charge of colloidal particles with cyt c, while the heme pocket remains almost unchanged due to the screening effect of the negatively charged field created by the intrinsic charge. The conformational changes of cyt c induced by its adsorption at a bare glassy carbon electrode/solution interface and the effect of the electric field on the ligation state of the heme can be avoided at the colloidal‐Au‐modified electrode/solution interface. Finally, a possible model for the adsorption orientation of cyt c at the colloidal‐Au‐modified electrode/solution interface is proposed.     

Conformational behavior of grafted weak polyelectrolyte chains: effects of counterion condensation and nonelectrostatic anion adsorption

Poly[(2-dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate] (PDEM) is completely charged, partially charged, and uncharged at pH 4, 7, and 10, respectively. We have investigated the salt effects on the conformational change of PDEM chains grafted on a surface at different pH by using quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-D) and surface plasmon resonance (SPR). The changes in frequency (Δf) and dissipation (ΔD) in QCM-D measurements demonstrate that the conformational behavior is governed by counterion condensation at pH 4 and 7 but by nonelectrostatic anion adsorption at pH 10. The addition of Na(2)SO(4) induces more collapse of the grafted layer than that of NaClO(3) at pH 4 and 7. However, they have a similar effect at pH 10. The shift of resonance unit (ΔRU) in SPR measurements reflects the changes of layer thickness and layer refractive index. At pH 4, ΔRU decreases with ionic strength in the presence of Na(2)SO(4), indicating the decrease of layer thickness or the chain collapse. However, ΔRU exhibits a minimum as the ionic strength increases in the case of NaClO(3). This is because the effects of the layer thickness and refractive index are dominant in the low and high ionic strength regimes, respectively. At pH 7, ΔRU slightly varies with ionic strength in the case of either Na(2)SO(4) or NaClO(3), indicating that the effects of the layer thickness and refractive index are comparable during the layer collapse. At pH 10, the shift in ΔRU suggests that the nonelectrostatic anion adsorption governs the conformational behavior of the PDEM chains.     

Quantifying dithiothreitol displacement of functional ligands from gold nanoparticles

Dithiothreitol (DTT)-based displacement is widely utilized for separating ligands from their gold nanoparticle (AuNP) conjugates, a critical step for differentiating and quantifying surface-bound functional ligands and therefore the effective surface density of these species on nanoparticle-based therapeutics and other functional constructs. The underlying assumption is that DTT is smaller and much more reactive toward gold compared with most ligands of interest, and as a result will reactively displace the ligands from surface sites thereby enabling their quantification. In this study, we use complementary dimensional and spectroscopic methods to characterize the efficiency of DTT displacement. Thiolated methoxypolyethylene glycol (SH-PEG) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) were chosen as representative ligands. Results clearly show that (1) DTT does not completely displace bound SH-PEG or BSA from AuNPs, and (2) the displacement efficiency is dependent on the binding affinity between the ligands and the AuNP surface. Additionally, the displacement efficiency for conjugated SH-PEG is moderately dependent on the molecular mass (yielding efficiencies ranging from 60 to 80?% measured by ATR-FTIR and ≈90?% by ES-DMA), indicating that the displacement efficiency for SH-PEG is predominantly determined by the S–Au bond. BSA is particularly difficult to displace with DTT (i.e., the displacement efficiency is nearly zero) when it is in the so-called normal form. The displacement efficiency for BSA improves to 80?% when it undergoes a conformational change to the expanded form through a process of pH change or treatment with a surfactant. An analysis of the three-component system (SH-PEG?+?BSA?+?AuNP) indicates that the presence of SH-PEG decreases the displacement efficiency for BSA, whereas the displacement efficiency for SH-PEG is less impacted by the presence of BSA.

电化学和紫外-可见吸收光谱法研究pH和金纳米粒子对细胞色素c的影响

制备了粒径均匀、平均粒子尺度为(4.7±0.6)nm,表面修饰3-巯基丙酸(MPA)的金纳米粒子(AuNPs).利用电化学和紫外-可见(UV-Vis)吸收光谱研究了pH和AuNPs对细胞色素c(Cytc)结构的影响.UV-Vis吸收光谱结果表明,pH为7.5-3.0时,Cytc和Cytc-AuNPs复合物的结构没有发生明显变化.当pH=2.0时,Cytc和Cytc-AuNPs复合物的Soret谱峰位置均发生明显移动,说明pH诱导其构象发生变化.循环伏安(CV)结果表明,表面修饰了MPA的AuNPs能促进Cytc和电极之间的电子传输,与修饰了柠檬酸根的AuNPs相比,其生物兼容性更好.pH的变化会引起CV中Cytc峰电流的改变和峰电位的移动.随着pH值的降低,Cytc电活性的量逐渐减小,并且pH诱导Cytc发生不可逆变性.AuNPs的引入使自由态的Cytc耐酸性增强,而使得吸附态的Cytc耐酸能力减弱.     

Isothermal titration calorimetric studies of the pH induced conformational changes of bovine serum albumin

Bovine serum albumin (BSA) is a soft globular protein that undergoes conformational changes through several identified transition steps in the pH range 2–13.5. The ability to change conformation makes BSA capable of complexing different ligands from fatty acids to cations or drugs and carries them in the bloodstream. Microcalorimetric titration of BSA with NaOH solution was performed to measure the enthalpy of conformational changes. Two exothermic enthalpy changes were found in the course of the titration between pH 3 and 9.5, which can be identified with the E–F, and the F–N transitions. The enthalpy change at pH 3.5 (transition from the E to the F form of BSA, folding of intra-domain helices in domain I) is independent of the protein concentration. The second transition (F–N, folding of domain III) was observed at pH 4.8 for the 0.1% BSA solution, but it shifted to higher pH values as the protein concentration increased to 0.2% and 0.3%. The tightening of the protein structure with increasing pH was verified measuring intrinsic fluorescence of tryptophan residues. At even higher pH value, pH 10.5, fluorescence measurements revealed protein expansion. The BSA conformational changes were also measured by dynamic light scattering. The hydrodynamic diameter was smaller at the i.e.p. of BSA (5–7 nm at pH ~5) and larger at the two ends of the pH range (17.5 nm at pH 2 and 8.3 nm at pH 10).