Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC)

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) is an experimental technique to measure the

heat energy uptake that takes place in a sample during controlled increase (or decrease)
in temperature. At the simplest level it may be used to determine thermal transition
(“melting”) temperatures for samples in solution, solid, or mixed phases (e.g.
suspensions). But with more sensitive apparatus and more careful experimentation it
may be used to determine absolute thermodynamic data for thermally-induced
transitions of various kinds. Formerly this was more the realm of the dedicated
specialist, but now with the ready availability of sensitive, stable, user-friendly DSC
instruments, microcalorimetry has become part of the standard repertoire of methods
available to the biophysical chemist for the study of macromolecular conformation and
interactions in solution at reasonable concentrations. And, to the extent that thermal
transitions might be affected by ligand binding, DSC can provide useful information
about protein-ligand binding. The advantages of calorimetric techniques arise because
they are based on direct measurements of intrinsic thermal properties of the samples,
and are usually noninvasive and require no chemical modifications or extrinsic probes.
Furthermore, with careful analysis and interpretation, calorimetric experiments can
directly provide fundamental thermodynamic information about the processes
involved.

[1] Differential scanning microcalorimetry Alan Cooper Chemistry Dept., Glasgow

University, Glasgow G12 8QQ Adapted from ref.21: A. Cooper, M. A. Nutley, A.
Wadood, Differential scanning microcalorimetry in S. E. Harding and B. Z. Chowdhry
(Eds.), Protein-Ligand Interactions: hydrodynamics and calorimetry. Oxford
University Press, Oxford New York, (2000) p 287-318.
DSC is a thermal analysis technique that measures the difference in energy provided to
a sample and a reference material in function of a controlled temperature
programming. This technique keeps constant the heat supplied to the sample and
reference. A control system (servo system) immediately increases the energy supplied
to the sample or the reference, depending on if the process involved is endothermic or
exothermic. Therefore, the equipment keeps the sample and the reference at the same
temperature. The record of the DSC curve is expressed in terms of heat flow versus
temperature or time (Vasconcelos, 2010).

[2] Vasconcelos, G. C., Mazur, R.L; Botelho, E.C, Rezende, M.C, Costa, M.L. 2010,
“J. Aerosp.Technol. Manag.”, Vol. 2, No. 2, pp. 155-162.