PRESSURE-INDUCED HYDRATION DYNAMICS OF MEMBRANES

Pressure-jump initiated time-resolved x-ray diffraction studies of dynamics of the hydration of the hexagonal phase in biological membranes show that (i) the relaxation of the unit cell spacing is nonexponential in time; and (ii) the Bragg peaks shift smoothly to their final positions without significant broadening or loss in crystalline order. This suggests that the hydration is not diffusion limited but occurs via a rather homogeneous swelling of the whole lattice, described by power law kinetics with an exponent beta = 1.3 +/- 0.2.