Title: Proteins in solution: Fractal surfaces in solutions
Author(s):

	R. Tscheliessnig ( Austrian Centre for Industrial Biotechnology (ACIB), Muthgasse 11, A-1190 Wien, Austria ) ,
	L. Pusztai ( Wigner Research Centre for Physics, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Konkoly Thegeut. 29-33, H-1121, Budapest, Hungary )

The concept of the surface of a protein in solution, as well of the interface between protein and 'bulk solution', is introduced. The experimental technique of small angle X-ray and neutron scattering is introduced and described briefly. Molecular dynamics simulation, as an appropriate computational tool for studying the hydration shell of proteins, is also discussed. The concept of protein surfaces with fractal dimensions is elaborated. We finish by exposing an experimental (using small angle X-ray scattering) and a computer simulation case study, which are meant as demonstrations of the possibilities we have at hand for investigating the delicate interfaces that connect (and divide) protein molecules and the neighboring electrolyte solution.

Key words: protein solution, protein hydration, protein surface, small angle scattering
PACS: 87.10.Tf, 87.14.E-, 87.15.A-, 87.15.N-

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