Viscosity of bovine serum albumin aqueous solutions as a function of temperature and concentration

This paper presents the results of viscosity determinations on aqueous solutions of bovine serum albumin (BSA) at a wide range of concentrations and at temperatures ranging from 5 degrees C to 45 degrees C. On the basis of these measurements a general formula connecting the relative viscosity eta r with temperature T and concentration c of the dissolved proteins was established: [formula: see text] The quantities alpha, beta, B, D and delta E are described in the text below. A simple substantiation of the formula was also given. This relation gives immediately the Mooney approximation and allows the prediction of the values of the parameter S and a self-crowding factor K in this approximation. By applying an asymptotic form of the formula such rheological quantities as the intrinsic viscosity and Huggins coefficient were calculated.