Molecular Origin of the Glass Transition in Polyelectrolyte Assemblies.

ABSTRACT: Water plays a central role in the assembly and the dynamics of charged systems such as proteins, enzymes, DNA, and surfactants. Yet it remains a challenge to resolve how water affects relaxation at a molecular level, particularly for assemblies of oppositely charged macromolecules. Here, the molecular origin of water's influence on the glass transition is quantified for several charged macromolecular systems. It is revealed that the glass transition temperature (T_g) is controlled by the number of water molecules surrounding an oppositely charged polyelectrolyte-polyelectrolyte intrinsic ion pair as 1/T_g ∼ ln(n_H2O/n_{intrinsic ion pair}). This relationship is found to be "general", as it holds for two completely

SUBMITTER: Zhang Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5968513 | biostudies-literature | 2018 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature