Protein and Water Dynamics in Bovine Serum Albumin-Water Mixtures over Wide Ranges of Composition

Dielectric dynamic behavior of bovine serum albumin (BSA)-water mixtures over wide ranges of water fractions, from dry protein until 40 wt % in water, was studied through dielectric relaxation spectroscopy (DRS). The alpha relaxation associated with the glass transition of the hydrated system was identified. The evolution of the low temperature dielectric relaxation of small polar groups of the protein surface with hydration level results in the enhancement of dielectric response and the decrease of relaxation times, until a critical water fraction, which corresponds to the percolation threshold for protonic conductivity. For water fractions higher than the critical one, the position of the secondary nu relaxation of water saturates in the Arrhenius diagram, while contributions originating from water molecules in excess (uncrystallized water or ice) follow separate relaxation modes slower than the nu relaxation.