Elementary analysis of chemical electric field effects in biological macromolecules. 1: Thermodynamic foundations

Neumann E. Elementary analysis of chemical electric field effects in biological macromolecules. 1: Thermodynamic foundations. In: Gutmann F, ed. Modern bioelectrochemistry. New York: Plenum Press; 1986: 97-132.The analysis of bioelectric phenomena requires knowledge of the thermodynamics and kinetics of electric field effects on chemical reactions. Chemical relaxation kinetics in high electric fields is the method of choice in order to imitate the high electric fields operative in living entities like membranes or close to fixed charges like those in proteins and nucleic acids. The present account covers elementary aspects of chemical electric field effects. Part 1 deals with the thermodynamic foundations of the analytical formalism required for a rigorous treatment of chemical field effects. Part 2 utilizes this frame of concepts and provides kinetic information as to how to investigate chemical and orientational contributions to structural changes in macromolecules and membrane organizations. The basic formalism established so far for isolated macromolecular systems may be extended to treat more complex bioelectric phenomena on the level of membranes and of cells