Elucidation of the dissolution mechanism requires understanding
the transport of NaOH, the reactive compound here, despite
that transport being considered fast, because the presence of hydroxide
(a) causes the gel to swell extensively (Gunasekaran et al.,
2006), and (b) breaks down the crosslinks between protein aggregates
(Mercadé-Prieto et al., 2007b). Both these processes occur at
high pH, at pH > 10 for swelling and pH > 11.2 for the breakdown
reactions.