title: Scaling equations for a biopolymer in salt solution.
abstract: The effect of the simultaneous presence of monovalent and divalent cations on the thermodynamics of polyelectrolyte solutions is an incompletely solved problem. In physiological conditions, combinations of these ions affect structure formation in biopolymer systems. Dynamic light scattering measurements of the collective diffusion coefficient D and the osmotic compressibility of semidilute hyaluronan solutions containing different ratios of sodium and calcium ions are compared with simple polyelectrolyte models. Scaling relationships are proposed in terms of polymer concentration and ionic strength J of the added salt. Differences in the effects of sodium and calcium ions are found to be expressed only through J.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Spectrométrie Physique UMR CNRS 5588, Université J. Fourier de Grenoble, BP 87, 38402 St Martin d'Hères, France.
authors.forename: Erik
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Geissler
authors.forename: Anne-Marie
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Hecht
authors.forename: Ferenc
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Horkay
mesh_terms: D002122:Calcium Chloride / Q000737:chemistry*; D002412:Cations; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid / Q000737:chemistry*; D009994:Osmolar Concentration; D009997:Osmotic Pressure; D012965:Sodium Chloride / Q000737:chemistry*; D012996:Solutions; D013816:Thermodynamics
chemical_list: D002412:Cations; D012996:Solutions; D012965:Sodium Chloride; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid; D002122:Calcium Chloride