This paper reviews work carried out in the elucidation of the solvation properties of biopolymer solutions. Studies dealing with the molecular aspects of biopolymer-solution organization are emphasized. Classic theories of polymer solutions are presented in the Introduction to lay a background for the more current studies discussed in the following sections of the report. The second part of the paper discusses several experimental studies dealing with the interrelationship between biopolymer chain conformation and solvent ordering about the biopolymer. Applications of IR, NMR and thermocalorimetric techniques to solution studies are presented. The third section of the manuscript covers current molecular theories being used to characterize the molecular thermodynamics of polymer-solvent interactions. Extensive discussion of the hydration-shell model, and its application to biopolymer solutions, is presented. The next section deals with protein denaturation and the role which protein-solvent interactions play in governing the behavior of this process. The last section of the manuscript presents the highlights of several investigations which are not directly concerned with, but are related to, the organization of solute and solvent structures in biopolymer solutions. In presenting these studies the applications of ORD/CD, ultraviolet, NMR, X-ray diffraction, electric birefringence and IR spectroscopies in solution studies are considered.
展开▼
