Growth of Clusters toward Liquid-Liquid Phase Separation of Monoclonal Antibodies as Characterized by Small-Angle X-ray Scattering and Molecular Dynamics Simulation.

In concentrated protein solutions, short-range attractions (SRAs) contribute to liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) as a function of temperature and salinity, particularly when the charge and thus long-range repulsions are low near the isoelectric point pI. Herein, we study how SRA and solution morphology vary with the approach to LLPS from increased SRA for two monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) as salt concentration is reduced near the pI. These properties are quantified using small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) interpreted via coarse-grained (CG) molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and compared with less descriptive properties from static and dynamic light scattering.

The long and winding road to uncertainty: the link between spatial distance and feelings of uncertainty.

Construal Level Theory (CLT) [1] defines psychological distance as any object, event, or person that cannot be experienced by the self in the here and now. The goal of the present research was to demonstrate that feelings of uncertainty are closely linked to the concept of psychological distance. Two experiments tested the assumption that spatial distance and uncertainty are bidirectionally related.