Pressure denaturation and aggregation of beta-lactoglobulin studied by intrinsic fluorescence depolarization, Rayleigh scattering, radiationless energy transfer and hydrophobic fluoroprobing.

beta-Lactoglobulin (beta-lg) in aqueous solution under pressure showed a marked depolarization of intrinsic fluorescence assigned to a gradually increased rotational diffusion of tryptophyl moieties in pressure-unfolded states. The corresponding change in anisotropy provided a new and more accurate method for determining denaturation volume which, for beta-lg in neutral aqueous solution with ionic strength 0.16 (NaCl) at 25 degrees C, was delta V degree = -73 (SE 3) ml mol-1, corresponding to half denaturation at 123 MPa. The pressure unfolding led to exposure of hydrophobic regions to the protein-water interface that could be probed by fluorescence intensity of a beta-lg-1-anilinonaphthalene-8-sulphonic acid (ANS) complex with 1:1 stoichiometry, as determined by Job's method of continuous variation. The unfolding of beta-lg impaired the binding capacity of the inner calyx, with a reduction in binding capacity of 50% at 50 MPa, as shown by decreasing cis-parinaric acid fluorescence, decreasing anisotropy and decreasing radiationless energy transfer from tryptophans to this probe with increasing pressure. The pressure-induced reversible exposure of hydrophobic groups to the protein-water interface may, at least partly, explain the initial aggregation reactions, evident from increased Rayleigh scattering from approximately 50 MPa, prior to irreversible pressure-induced gel formation of beta-lg. Using results from this and previous studies, we propose a three step pressure denaturation model for beta-lg for neutral solution at ambient temperature, including an initial pressure-melted state (up to 50 MPa) with partial collapse of the inner calyx and solvent exposure of the free thiol group, followed by a reversible denaturation with exposure of hydrophobic regions (half denaturation at 123 MPa) and with irreversible denaturation with thiol-disulphide exchange becoming increasingly important at higher pressures. Effects of pressure on beta-lg, as measured by fluorescence depolarization, were found for the reversible denaturation steps to be similar to the effects of chemical denaturants but different with respect to shift in ANS emission maxima.