Weakly hydrated surfaces and the binding interactions of small biological solutes

Eur Biophys J. 2012 Apr;41(4):369-77. doi: 10.1007/s00249-011-0776-2. Epub 2011 Nov 29.

Abstract

Extended planar hydrophobic surfaces, such as are found in the side chains of the amino acids histidine, phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan, exhibit an affinity for the weakly hydrated faces of glucopyranose. In addition, molecular species such as these, including indole, caffeine, and imidazole, exhibit a weak tendency to pair together by hydrophobic stacking in aqueous solution. These interactions can be partially understood in terms of recent models for the hydration of extended hydrophobic faces and should provide insight into the architecture of sugar-binding sites in proteins.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Glucose / chemistry
  • Glucose / metabolism
  • Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions
  • Proteins / chemistry
  • Proteins / metabolism
  • Solvents / chemistry*
  • Surface Properties
  • Water / chemistry*

Substances

  • Proteins
  • Solvents
  • Water
  • Glucose