Journal of Physical Chemistry B, Vol.114, No.38, 12392-12397, 2010
Influence of Hydrostatic Pressure on Dynamics and Spatial Distribution of Protein Partial Molar Volume: Time-Resolved Surficial Kirkwood-Buff Approach
The influence of hydrostatic pressure on the partial molar volume (PMV) of the protein apomyoglobin (AMb) was investigated by all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Using the time-resolved Kirkwood-Buff (KB) approach, the dynamic behavior of the PMV was identified. The simulated time average value of the PMV and its reduction by 3000 bar pressurization correlated with experimental data. In addition, with the aid of the surficial KB integral method, we obtained the spatial distributions of the components of PM V to elucidate the detailed mechanism of the PMV reduction. New R-dependent PM V profiles identified the regions that increase or decrease the PM V under the high pressure condition. The results indicate that besides the hydration in the vicinity of the protein surface, the outer space of the first hydration layer also significantly influences the total PM V change. These results provide a direct and detailed picture of pressure induced PM V reduction.