Solubilization as a method for studying self-association: solubility of naphthalene in the bile salt sodium cholate and the complex pattern of its aggregation.

Solubilization of uncharged, slightly soluble solutes is shown to be a useful approach for investigating patterns of self-association. The solubility of naphthalene in aqueous solutions of sodium cholate was determined over the concentration range of 0-0.20 mole/liter at 25 degrees. Bile salts such as sodium cholate have many detergent-like properties and exhibit hydrophobic self-association in aqueous solutions. It has become cutomary to describe this aggregation using the model of micelle formation. The naphthalene solubility data show that the CMC for sodium cholate is not well defined. Comparison with solubilization in a typical micelle-forming system, sodium decanesulfonate, shows clearly that sodium cholate does not resemble a micelle-forming system. Further examination of the solubility data in terms of mutual association of naphthalene with aggregate species shows that the self-association of sodium cholate is not consistent with the formation of (a) only large micelles containing 10 or more monomers, (b) only dimers, (c) dimers and large micelles, and (d) any unique oligomer or multimer. A complex pattern of association, including the formation of dimers and one or more higher oligomers, is indicated.