Nonthermal acceleration of protein hydration by sub-terahertz irradiation.

ABSTRACT: The collective intermolecular dynamics of protein and water molecules, which overlap in the sub-terahertz (THz) frequency region, are relevant for expressing protein functions but remain largely unknown. This study used dielectric relaxation (DR) measurements to investigate how externally applied sub-THz electromagnetic fields perturb the rapid collective dynamics and influence the considerably slower chemical processes in protein-water systems. We analyzed an aqueous lysozyme solution, whose hydration is not thermally equilibrated. By detecting time-lapse differences in microwave DR, we demonstrated that sub-THz irradiation gradually decreases the dielectric permittivity of the lysozyme solution by reducing the orientational polarization of water molecules. Comprehensive analysis combinin

SUBMITTER: Sugiyama JI 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10203368 | biostudies-literature | 2023 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature