Effect of an inhalation anesthetic on the viscosity of aqueous bovine serum albumin solutions

Abstract

The viscosities of aqueous bovine serum albumin (BSA) solutions were measured as a function of pH in the neutral and acidic region in the absence and presence of inhalation anesthetic halothane. The reduced viscosities of BSA solutions in the presence of halothane at any pH measured had smaller values than those in the absence of halothane. The finding suggests that the volume of a BSA molecule in the solution shrinks by adding halothane irrespective of its structure.