title: NMR triple-quantum filtered relaxation analysis of 17O-water in insulin solutions: an insight into the aggregation of insulin and the properties of its bound water.
abstract: Transverse triple-quantum filtered NMR spectroscopy (TTQF) of 17O-water was used to study the properties of water in insulin solutions at different Zn2+ concentrations and pH values. It was established that strongly bound water molecules are already present in Zn-free insulin. On the assumption that the effective correlation time of a strongly bound water molecule, tau sb, is 10 ns, the apparent number of strongly bound water molecules was approximately 3 to 4 per insulin monomer. Addition of Zn2+ equivalent to approximately 2 g-atoms per hexamer did not produce substantial increases in the overall 17O-water TTQF signal intensity and apparent fraction of bound water. The dramatic enhancement of the TTQF signals observed for samples with a Zn2+/hexamer ratio greater than approximately 2:1 could be attributed to the increase in correlation time of the strongly bound water, due to the formation of higher-order oligomers of the protein.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Sydney, N.S.W, Australia.
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Torres
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Grieve
authors.forename: P W
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Kuchel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D007328:Insulin / Q000737:chemistry*; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D010103:Oxygen Isotopes; D011487:Protein Conformation; D012996:Solutions; D013552:Swine; D015032:Zinc / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D007328:Insulin; D010103:Oxygen Isotopes; D012996:Solutions; D015032:Zinc