Persistence Length of Titin from Rabbit Skeletal Muscles Measured with Scattering and Microrheology Techniques

The persistence length of titin from rabbit skeletal muscles was measured using a combination of static and dynamic light scattering, and neutron small angle scattering. Values of persistence length in the range 9–16 nm were found for titin-II, which corresponds to mainly physiologically inelastic A-band part of the protein, and for a proteolytic fragment with 100-nm contour length from the physiologically elastic I-band part. The ratio of the hydrodynamic radius to the static radius of gyration indicates that the proteins obey Gaussian statistics typical of a flexible polymer in a θ-solvent. Furthermore, measurements of the flexibility as a function of temperature demonstrate that titin-II and the I-band titin fragment experience a similar denaturation process; unfolding begins at 318 K and proceeds in two stages: an initial gradual 50% change in persistence length is followed by a sharp unwinding transition at 338 K. Complementary microrheology (video particle tracking) measurements indicate that the viscoelasticity in dilute solution behaves according to the Flory/Fox model, providing a value of the radius of gyration for titin-II (63 ± 1 nm) in agreement with static light scattering and small angle neutron scattering results.