Thermal excitations of hydrated macromolecules: the effects of hydration on the Mössbauer absorption and scattering spectra.

The spectra of Rayleigh scattering of Mössbauer radiation (RSMR) and Mössbauer absorption by globular macromolecules are calculated. The dependence of the spectra parameters on hydration is modeled with the account for thermal low-frequency vibrations of the particles constituting the globule. Deformational motions of the macromolecule fragments leading to deviations from its equilibrium spherical shape are considered introducing collective dynamical variables governed by Langevin equations with random sources of external forces. The macromolecule is modeled by a double-layered sphere: a rigid (elastic) core is surrounded by a porous hydration shell filled with fluid. The dynamical properties of the bound water inside the shell are described by the Debye-Brinkman equations. The degree of hydration is introduced by means of a combination of the mass coefficients of the porous shell with fluid and the mass coefficients in the limiting cases when the flow inside the shell is "frozen" and in the case of free flow. The hydration-dependent Lamb-Mössbauer factor and the elastic fraction of the RSMR are calculated and compared with experimental data from the literature.