Evolution of the internal dynamics of two globular proteins from dry powder to solution

Myoglobin and lysozyme picosecond internal dynamics in solution is compared to that in hydrated powders by quasielastic incoherent neutron scattering. This technique is sensitive to the motions of the nonexchangeable hydrogen atoms in a sample. Because these are homogeneously distributed throughout the protein structure, the average dynamics of the protein is described. We first propose an original data treatment to deal with the protein global motions in the case of solution samples. The validity of this treatment is checked by comparison with classical measurements of the diffusion constants. The evolution with the scattering vector of the width and relative contribution of the quasielastic component was then used to derive information on the amount of local diffusive motions and their characteristic average relaxation time. From dry powder to coverage by one water layer, the surface side chains progressively acquire the possibility to diffuse locally. On subsequent hydration, the main effect of water is to improve the rate of these diffusive motions. Motions with higher average amplitude occur in solution, about three times more than for a hydrated powder at complete coverage, with a shorter average relaxation time, approximately 4.5 ps compared to 9.4 ps for one water monolayer.