Modulation of the hydrogen bonding structure of water by renal osmolytes

Osmolytes are an integral part of living organism, e.g., the kidney uses sorbitol, trimethylglycine, taurine and myo-inositol to counter the deleterious effects of urea and salt. Therefore, knowing that the osmolytes' act either directly to the protein or mediated through water is of great importance. Our experimental and computational results show that protecting osmolytes, e.g., trimethylglycine and sorbitol, significantly modulate the water H-bonding network structure, although the magnitude and spatial extent of osmolyte-induced perturbation greatly vary. In contrast, urea behaves neutrally toward local water H-bonding network. Protecting osmolytes studied here show strong concentration-dependent behaviors (vibrational frequencies and lifetimes of two different infrared (IR) probes), while denaturant does not. The H-bond donor and/or acceptor (OH/NH) in a given osmolyte molecule play a critical role in defining their action. Our findings highlight the significance of the alteration of H-bonding network of water under biologically relevant environment, often encountered in real biological systems.