Abstract
The critical micelle concentration (CMC) of sodium deoxycholate (NaDC) and the effects of amides on the micellization processes have been studied by fluorometric technique using pyrene as a probe. The addition of amides as cosolvent destabilized the NaDC micelle and increased the CMC. The order of effectiveness for the perturbation of NaDC micelle was N-methylacetamide ${\ge}$ DMF > acetamide > formamide, which is the order of hydrophobicity of the amines. This indicated that the effect of amides on the micellization processes of NaDC arises from diminution of the hydrophobic effect. The electrostatic repulsion between ionic head groups in the NaDC micelle appeared to be much less than that in aliphatic ionic micelle. This was also revealed in the weaker dependence of the CMC on ionic strength. The premicellar association of NaDC was not significantly involved in the micellization processes of the bile salt.