Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 14, 2026
09:27
Rapid One-step Enzymatic Synthesis and All-aqueous Purification of Trehalose Analogues
Published on: February 17, 2017
Water and trehalose: how much do they interact with each other?
S E Pagnotta1, S E McLain, A K Soper
1Centro de Fisica de Materiales (CSIC-UPV/EHU) MPC, 20008 Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain, School of Health and Biomedical Sciences, King's College London, London SE1 9NH, UK.
The Journal of Physical Chemistry. B
|March 20, 2010
Summary
Trehalose, a sugar known for protecting organisms in extreme conditions, actually causes minimal changes to water structure and forms fewer hydrogen bonds than previously thought. This finding challenges existing hypotheses about its bioprotective mechanisms.
Area of Science:
- Biophysics
- Structural Biology
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Organisms exhibit cryptobiosis to survive extreme environments like dehydration and low temperatures.
- Sugars, particularly trehalose, are recognized as effective bioprotectants.
- The protective role of trehalose is hypothesized to stem from significant alterations in water structure within its hydration shell.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the structural impact of trehalose solvation on water molecules.
- To test the prevailing hypothesis regarding trehalose's mechanism of action in bioprotection.
- To quantify the hydrogen bonding interactions between trehalose and water.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing advanced neutron diffraction experiments.
- Employing Empirical Potential Structure Refinement (EPSR) simulations.
- Analyzing the hydration shell structure around trehalose molecules.
Main Results:
- Trehalose solvation induces only minor modifications to the overall water structure.
- The number of water molecules forming hydrogen bonds with trehalose is surprisingly limited.
- The study provides direct experimental evidence challenging existing theories.
Conclusions:
- The protective efficacy of trehalose may not be solely dependent on extensive water structure modification.
- Further research is needed to fully elucidate the bioprotective mechanisms of trehalose.
- These findings offer new insights into the interaction of sugars with water in biological contexts.
Related Concept Videos
01:16Solubility Equilibria: Ionic Product of Water
Pure water is a weak electrolyte; only a small amount ionizes into hydrogen and hydroxide ions. At any given temperature, the concentration of undissociated water is almost constant, so the ionic product of water is the product of the hydrogen and hydroxide ion concentrations, denoted as Kw. The square root of Kw gives the individual ion concentrations.
The ionic product of water varies with temperature, and its value is 1.0 x 10−14 at standard experimental conditions. Per Le Chatelier's...
The ionic product of water varies with temperature, and its value is 1.0 x 10−14 at standard experimental conditions. Per Le Chatelier's...
01:07Cohesion
Cohesion is the attraction between molecules of the same type, such as water molecules. Water molecules have an overall neutral charge but are polar molecule. An oxygen atom in one water molecule has a partial negative charge that can bind to a hydrogen atom with a partial positive charge in a second water molecule, forming a hydrogen bond. Each water molecule can form up to four hydrogen bonds with other water molecules. Hydrogen bonds are responsible for water's cohesive nature.
On a surface,...
On a surface,...
01:20Aldehydes and Ketones with Water: Hydrate Formation
An oxygen-based nucleophile, like water, can undergo addition reactions with aldehydes and ketones. The reaction leads to the formation of hydrates, also referred to as 1,1-diols or geminal diols.
The formation of hydrates is a reversible reaction. Hydrate formation is influenced by steric and electronic factors accompanying the alkyl substituents on the carbonyl group: The rate of hydrate formation increases with a decrease in the number of alkyl groups attached to the carbonyl carbon. Hence,...
The formation of hydrates is a reversible reaction. Hydrate formation is influenced by steric and electronic factors accompanying the alkyl substituents on the carbonyl group: The rate of hydrate formation increases with a decrease in the number of alkyl groups attached to the carbonyl carbon. Hence,...
03:13Intermolecular Forces
Atoms and molecules interact through bonds (or forces): intramolecular and intermolecular. The forces are electrostatic as they arise from interactions (attractive or repulsive) between charged species (permanent, partial, or temporary charges) and exist with varying strengths between ions, polar, nonpolar, and neutral molecules. The different types of intermolecular forces are ion–dipole, dipole–dipole, hydrogen bonds, and dispersion; among these, dipole–dipole, hydrogen bonds, and dispersion...
01:28Phase Diagrams of Ternary Systems
Consider a ternary system, which is composed of three components: water (W), ethanoic acid (E), and trichloromethane (T). Here, Ethanoic acid (E) is fully miscible with both water (W) and trichloromethane (T), meaning it can mix entirely with either of them. However, water and trichloromethane have partial miscibility, meaning they can only mix to a certain extent, beyond which two separate phases will form.The phase diagram of a ternary system is represented as an equilateral triangle, where...
02:28Intermolecular Forces in Solutions
The formation of a solution is an example of a spontaneous process, a process that occurs under specified conditions without energy from some external source.
When the strengths of the intermolecular forces of attraction between solute and solvent species in a solution are no different than those present in the separated components, the solution is formed with no accompanying energy change. Such a solution is called an ideal solution. A mixture of ideal gases (or gases such as helium and argon,...
When the strengths of the intermolecular forces of attraction between solute and solvent species in a solution are no different than those present in the separated components, the solution is formed with no accompanying energy change. Such a solution is called an ideal solution. A mixture of ideal gases (or gases such as helium and argon,...