Interactions in undersaturated and supersaturated lysozyme solutions: Static and dynamic light scattering results

Abstract

We have performed multiangle static and dynamic light scattering studies of lysozyme solutions at pH=4.7. The Rayleigh ratio Rθ and the collective diffusion coefficient Dc were determined as function of both protein concentration cp and salt concentration cs with two different salts. At low salt concentrations, the scattering ratio Kcp/Rθ and diffusivity increased with protein concentration above the values for a monomeric, ideal solution. With increasing salt concentration this trend was eventually reversed. The hydrodynamic interactions of lysozyme in solution, extracted from the combination of static and dynamic scattering data, decreased significantly with increasing salt concentration. These observations reflect changes in protein interactions, in response to increased salt screening, from net repulsion to net attraction. Both salts had the same qualitative effect, but the quantitative behavior did not scale with the ionic strength of the solution. This indicates the presence of salt specific effects. At low protein concentrations, the slopes of Kcp/Rθ and Dc vs cp were obtained. The dependence of the slopes on ionic strength was modeled using a DLVO potential for colloidal interactions of two spheres, with the net protein charge Ze and Hamaker constant AH as fitting parameters. The model reproduces the observed variations with ionic strength quite well. Independent fits to the static and dynamic data, however, led to different values of the fitting parameters. These and other shortcomings suggest that colloidal interaction models alone are insufficient to explain protein interactions in solutions.