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Abrupt Structural Changes in Polyanionic Gels Evoked by Na‐Ca Ion Exchange: Their Biological Implications
Author(s) -
Tasaki Ichiji
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
macromolecular symposia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.257
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1521-3900
pISSN - 1022-1360
DOI - 10.1002/masy.200550909
Subject(s) - polyelectrolyte , chemistry , counterion , divalent , lyotropic , hofmeister series , phosphate , ion exchange , inorganic chemistry , ion , crystallography , biophysics , polymer , organic chemistry , liquid crystalline , biology
Anionic polyelectrolyte gels, synthetic or natural, undergo abrupt structural changes when the monovalent counterions in the gel, e.g., Na + , are replaced with divalent cations, e.g., Ca 2+ . These structural changes are caused by the preferential binding of Ca 2+ to the polyelectrolyte chains and the ability of Ca 2+ to form crosslinks between two neighboring chains. Strong lyotropic (Hofmeister) effects of anions, such as fluoride, phosphate, aspartate and chloride, on the repetitiveness of abrupt structural changes in the gel strands are demonstrated. These findings have important biological implications.