Skip to main content
. 2006 Sep 12;103(38):13997–14002. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0606236103

Table 1.

Solvent accessible surface areas and Δgtr values of osmolytes

Osmolyte* SA+, Å2 SA, Å2 SAo, Å2 ΣSA, Å2 Δgtr, cal/mol§
TMAO 0.0 43.2 168.4 211.6 89 ± 2
Betaine 3.6 82.7 166.7 253.0 65 ± 3
Sucrose 0.0 336.9 137.3 474.2 56 ± 6
Trehalose 0.0 340.6 145.2 485.8 54 ± 8
Sarcosine 24.5 43.3 141.6 209.4 50 ± 2
Sorbitol 0.0 233.6 97.8 331.4 43 ± 7
Proline 24.5 88.9 133.5 246.9 40 ± 8
Glycerol 0.0 142.7 84.1 226.8 22 ± 8
Urea 111.8 51.4 11.6 174.8 −41 ± 2
Guanidine 167.8 0.0 11.6 179.4 −59

*The 10 osmolytes listed in Fig. 1.

Osmolyte surface areas in Å2 with partial positive, negative, and neutral charge are indicated by SA+, SA, and SAo, respectively.

Total surface area in Å2 = sum of SA+, SA, and SAo.

§Δgtr is the free energy change that accompanies the transfer of a backbone unit from water to a 1 M osmolyte solution. Uncertainty in Δgtr values is based on two independent measurement techniques (11). Value for guanidine was provided by S. Sarker (personal communication).