Dielectrometry of hydration of fl avin mononucleotide and DNA

Abstract

Subject and Purpose. The elucidation of the molecular mechanisms of action of biomolecules is necessary for the development of state-of-the-art means of diagnosing and treatment. Dielectric studies in the millimeter wave range are effective for puzzling out the nature of the interaction of biomolecules with a surrounding aqueous solvent. Flavin mononucleotide (FMN), which can kill microorganisms and destroy cancer cells, is of particular interest. The aim of the work is to recognize hydration effects (changes in the state of water molecules) in FMN solutions. Methods and Methodology. The complex dielectric permittivity (CDP) is measured in the EHF range. Knowing the difference between the CDP of FMN solution and the CDP of water we find the difference, D es , between the effective dielectric permittivities in terms of the Debye theory of polar liquids. Since the relaxation time of dipoles of bound water is one or two orders of magnitude longer than that of free water, the amount of the difference D es characterizes the hydration of biomolecules. At low concentrations, this difference is proportional to the number of bound water molecules. Results. It has been shown that approximately18 water molecules are bound to the FMN molecule. Groups of atoms as the most probable hydration centers (primarily due to the hydrogen bonds) have been indicated. As the pH decreases, the number of water molecules bound to the Flavin mononucleotide increases to 21. The study of the FMN–DNA solution has shown that one nucleotide accounts for 25–26 bound water molecules in total. However, composing hydration numbers assumes a quantity of components less than 20. An assumption is made that the additional components are due to the cooperative nature of the hydration, leading to the fact that even if some solvent molecules do not come into a direct contact with hydration centers, they are under the influence of biomolecules all the same. Conclusion. Extremely-high-frequency dielectrometry is an effective method of research into the interaction of biomolecules with a water-ionic solvent. A FMN hydration model has been proposed, which indicates probable hydration centers and tells a measure of their effect on the solvent. It has been found that the FMN with DNA interaction increases the number of bound water molecules per one nucleotide of the DNA. The obtained results have been compared to the existing models of the DNA with FMN interaction.