Eight ligands were used in this study, four basic, three neutral and one acidic. Their binding to serum alpha 1-acid glycoprotein (orosomucoid) was measured at several temperatures, and the data were analysed together by a general model with three unknowns, number of binding sites, delta H0 and delta S0. The partition coefficients of the ligands were measured in octanol/water and heptane/water systems (log Poct. and log Phep.), and their molecular volumes were calculated by molecular modelling techniques. These structural properties allow determination of polarity parameters (delta log Poct.-hep., lambda oct. and lambda hep.) which encode in different proportions the various polar interactions between the solute and the aqueous and organic phases, i.e. hydrogen-bonding capacity and dipolarity/polarizability. This study shows that good correlations exist between delta H0 or delta S0 and polarity parameters, such that the enthalpic contribution to binding increases with increasing polarity of the ligands, mainly hydrogen-bond-donor acidity, whereas their entropic contribution to binding decreases.