Measuring Hydraulic Conductance and Hydration Potential of Brain Extracellular Matrix by Osmotic Stress

Protein structure and hydration probed by SANS and osmotic stress.

Interactions governing protein folding, stability, recognition, and activity are mediated by hydration. Here, we use small-angle neutron scattering coupled with osmotic stress to investigate the hydration of two proteins, lysozyme and guanylate kinase (GK), in the presence of solutes. By taking advantage of the neutron contrast variation that occurs upon addition of these solutes, the number of...

Hydration effects of heparin on antithrombin probed by osmotic stress.

Antithrombin is a key inhibitor of blood coagulation proteases and a prototype metastable protein. Heparin binding to antithrombin induces conformational transitions distal to the binding site. We applied osmotic stress techniques and rate measurements in the stopped flow fluorometer to investigate the possibility that hydration changes are associated with these transitions. Water transfer was ...

Editorial: Brain Extracellular Space: Geometry, Matrix and Physiological Importance

Comparison of physiological and molecular responses of Melissa officinalis L. to osmotic stress imposed by drought and salinity with iso-osmotic potential in hydroponic culture

This study was performed to compare some physiological and molecular responses of lemon balm to osmotic stress imposed by drought and salinity stresses with equal osmotic potential in hydroponic culture. Growing lemon balm plants in hydroponic culture were treated with drought and salinity stress using polyethylene glycol 6000 and sodium chloride for 14 days. Then, seedlings were sampled to eva...

Estimating hydration changes upon biomolecular reactions from osmotic stress, high pressure, and preferential hydration experiments.

How do we estimate, from thermodynamic measurements, the number of water molecules adsorbed or released from biomolecules as a result of a biochemical process such as binding and allosteric effects? Volumetric and osmotic stress analyses are established methods for estimating water numbers; however, these techniques often yield conflicting results. In contrast, Kirkwood-Buff theory offers a nov...