The spread of microwave technology and new microwave applications in medicine have revitalized interest in the dielectric behavior of biological systems. In this work, the Fröhlich-Kirkwood approach and the linear response theory have been applied in conjunction with molecular dynamics simulations to study the dielectric response of a lysozyme solution as a model. The overall experimental dielectric behavior of a 9.88 mM lysozyme solution has been reproduced in a quantitative manner by employing a method based on the decomposition of the hydration shells close to the solute. Detailed analysis of the calculated spectra identified two δ-processes located at 200 MHz (δ1) and about 1 GHz (δ2), respectively. δ1 is associated mainly with the first hydration shell, while δ2 mainly with bulk water and the second hydration shell. Moreover, indications for the existence of an even faster relaxation in the 10(11)-Hz frequency range were found for the first time. Finally, the static dielectric constants of lysozyme and its first and second hydration shells were calculated based on the Fröhlich-Kirkwood and the linear response theory approaches.

The use of microwaves in every day’s applications raises issues regarding the non thermal biological effects of microwaves. In this work we employ molecular dynamics simulations to advance further the dielectric studies of protein solutions in the case of lysozyme, taking into consideration possible frequency dependent changes in the structural and dynamic properties of the system upon application of electric field in the microwave region. The obtained dielectric spectra are identical with those derived in our previous work using the Fröhlich-Kirkwood approach in the framework of the linear response theory. Noticeable structural changes in the protein have been observed only at frequencies near its absorption maximum. Concerning Cα position fluctuations, different frequencies affected different regions of the protein sequence. Furthermore, the influence of the field on the kinetics of protein-water as well as on the water-water hydrogen bonds in the first hydration shell has been studied; an extension of the Luzar-Chandler kinetic model was deemed necessary for a better fit of the applied field results and for the estimation of more accurate hydrogen bond lifetime values.