Electrophoresis of proteins in semidilute polyethylene glycol solutions: mechanism of retardation.

The retardation of proteins in the M(r) range of 15-500 kDa in capillary electrophoresis conducted in semidilute solutions of the polymer polyethylene glycol (M(r) range 0.2-8.0 X 10(6)), was measured. The purpose was to test the predictions of the scaling theory with regard to the relation of retardation to (a) the M(r) of the polymer, (b) the concentration of the polymer, and (c) the radius of the protein particles. These predictions derive from a mechanism that relates retardation to the screening length of the polymer solution, viewed as the average distance between the entanglement points of polymer chains. For the molecular weight range from 60 to 500 kDa of (near) spherical proteins, the retardation was found to be related to polymer concentration c as mu/mu(0) = exp(-Ac0.69) where mu/mu(0) is the retardation expressed as the ratio between the mobility in polymer solution and that in free solution. The value of the exponent of 0.69 is in close agreement with the value of 0.75 predicted by the scaling theory. Parameter A was found (a) to scale as the 0.04th power of M(r) (polymer), approximating the predicted value of 0; and (b) to be proportional to particle radius as predicted. All measured values of retardation were independent of electric field strength in the range of 37-370 V/cm. Thus, experimental findings are consistent with the mechanism relating electrophoretic retardation to the screening length of the polymer network in the specified molecular weight range of proteins. Under the same conditions, log(mu/mu(0)) of proteins with M(r)'s less than 60 kDa (a) scales as the -0.06th power of M(r) (polymer), and (b) is proportional to polymer concentration, suggesting a retardation mechanism that is not related to the screening length.