Changes in mechanical characteristics of immobilized crystals and films of globular proteins during substitution of D2O for H2O

The influence of substitution of the isotopic composition of the medium on the mechanical properties of immobilized crystals and films from bovine pancreatic ribonuclease and hen egg white lysozyme was investigated. The order of magnitude of the observed effects indicates that the contribution of the electrostatic interaction to the observed isotopic effect may be considered inessential. The absence of aggregation in the H2O and D2O medium under experimental conditions is demonstrated by the method of the low angle dispersion of X-rays. The observed effects of D2O on the mechanical behavior of crystals and films of proteins may be accounted for by the strengthening of molecular interactions in the samples.