Abstract
Fourier transform infrared difference spectroscopy has been used to study the effect of water on the conformation of bacteriorhodopsin. The infrared spectra as a function of water content show a conformational change at about 0.06 g H2O/g bacteriorhodopsin. By an interference method the thickness of the sample was measured and shows similar behavior as a function of water content. This study gives insight into the process of water absorption by purple membrane. The observations are in good agreement with those found for other proteins.
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Abbreviations
- IR:
-
infrared
- FTIR:
-
Fourier transform IR
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Váró, G., Eisenstein, L. Infrared studies of water induced conformational changes in bacteriorhodopsin. Eur Biophys J 14, 163–168 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00253841
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00253841