Enhanced sodium cation binding by electrochemically reduced nitrobenzene-substituted lariat ethers

Electrochemically Driven Swinging of a Nitrobenzyl Pendant Arm in a Nickel Scorpionand Complex

A radical anion −NO₂^.− is formed upon an electrochemically reversible one‐electron reduction of the square‐planar Ni^II complex of N‐nitrobenzylcyclam. The −NO₂^.− group goes to occupy an axial position of the metal ion, thus establishing a significant electronic interaction with the metal center. In particular, the ESR spectrum supports the occurrence of an electron transfer from −NO₂^.− to the metal, which therefore presents a significant Ni^I character. On re‐oxidation, the nitrobenzyl side chain detaches and the Ni^II complex is restored, providing an example of a fully reversible redox driven intramolecular motion.

Natural products based crown ethers: synthesis and their anticancer potential

Natural products based novel crown ethers have been prepared by employing biologically active natural structures including tetrahydroisoquinoline, chrysin and biochanin-A as the side arms. The resulting crown scaffolds were evaluated for their anticancer potential against two cancer cell lines i.e. NCI-H460 (non-small lung carcinoma), MCF-7 (breast adenocarcinoma). The comparative study showed that the addition of crown scaffold put marked effects on antiproliferative profile of parent natural precursors and is significant for lung carcinoma in particular. Biochanin-A derived crown ether showed three (03) folds higher antiproliferative activity (IC₅₀ = 6.08 ± 0.07 µM) against lung carcinoma as compared to standard drug cisplatin (IC₅₀ = 19.00 ± 1.24 µM). Cytotoxic trends for NIH-3T3 cell lines were also examined and found reduced as compared to parent natural structures. Hence, these findings could open a new pathway towards developing effective carcinostatic drugs.HIGHLIGHTSFour natural products based novel crown ethers have been developed.Comparative antiproliferative screening of crown ethers and natural precursors.Addition of crown showed marked effects on anticancer profile of natural products.Crown formation is significant for lung carcinoma potential in particular.Biochanin-A derived crown ether found three folds more active than standard drug.

Being positive is not everything - experimental and computational studies on the selectivity of a self-assembled, multiple redox-state, receptor that binds anions with up to picomolar affinities

The interaction of the self-assembled trinuclear ruthenium bowl 1 3+ , that displays three other accessible oxidation states, with oxo-anions is investigated. Using a combination of NMR and electrochemical experimental data, estimates of the binding affinities of 1 4+ , 1 5+ , and 1 6+ for both halide and oxo-anions were derived. This analysis revealed that, across the range of oxidation states of the host, both high anion binding affinities (>10 9 M -1 for specific guests bound to 1 6+ ) and high selectivities (a range of >10 7 M -1 ) were observed. As the crystal structure of binding of the hexafluorophosphate anion revealed that the host has two potential binding sites (named the α and β pockets), the host-guest properties of both putative binding sites of the bowl, in all of its four oxidation states, were investigated through detailed quantum-based computational studies. These studies revealed that, due to the interplay of electrostatically assisted hydrogen-bonding and anion-π interactions, binding to the α pocket is generally preferred, except for the case of the relatively large and lipophilic hexafluorophosphate anionic guest and the host in the highest oxidation states, where the β pocket becomes relatively favourable. This analysis confirms that host-guest interactions involving structurally complex supramolecular architectures are driven by a combination of non-covalent interactions and, even in the case of charged binding pairs, electrostatics alone cannot accurately define these recognition processes.

Exploring the Role of H-Bonding in Organic Electrochemistry - From Supramolecular Applications to Mechanistic Investigations

H-bonds can exert a substantial impact on the course of organic electrode reactions due to their ability to stabilize charged intermediates and products formed during these reactions, as well as facilitate proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) reactions. This has fundamental implications for the mechanism of organic electrode reactions, but also practical impact in supramolecular chemistry and potentially synthetic electrochemistry. My group's main focus has been on the supramolecular applications, using electron transfer to alter the strength of H-bonds to create highly redox-responsive H-bond dimers. Initially we sought to avoid proton transfer because we feared that would lead to irreversible electrochemistry. However, inevitably proton transfer did show up, but, to our surprise, did not lead to irreversible electrochemistry. To explain this, we developed a new mechanism, the "wedge scheme", that shows how H-bonding can facilitate reversible electron and proton transfer. This insight recently led us to a new PCET-based design strategy for the creation of our most highly redox-responsive H-bond dimers yet.

Two-step modulation of ion recognition using a bis(saloph)-macrocyclic host having a 24-crown-8-like cavity

Precise modulation of cation binding affinity was accomplished by the efficient two-step conversion of a newly synthesized macrocyclic ligand H₄L² having a 24-crown-8-like cavity and two saloph moieties. The conversion of H₄L² into L²Ni₂ resulted in a 120-fold enhancement in the binding affinity towards Cs⁺. The electrochemical reduction of L²Ni₂ further enhanced the recognition ability by 3 orders of magnitude.

Enhanced catalytic electrochemical reduction of dissolved oxygen with ultraclean cucurbituril[7]-capped gold nanoparticles

Gold nanoparticles capped with cucurbituril[7] have been prepared in the absence of metallic cations and organic ligands. Remarkably, these nanohybrids encapsulate dissolved oxygen and are highly active in electrochemical reduction. The effect of the presence of sodium and ammonium salts on this catalysed process is also analysed.

A spectrophotometric and thermodynamic study of the charge-transfer complexes of iodine with 2-aminomethyl-15-crown-5 in chloroform and 1,2-dichloroethane solutions

Interaction of 2-aminomethyl-15-crown-5 (AM15C5) with iodine has been investigated spectrophotometrically in chloroform and 1,2-dichloroethane (1,2-DCE) solutions. The observed time dependence of the charge-transfer band and subsequent formation of I(3)(-) in solution were related to the slow transformation of the initially formed 1:1 AM15C5.I(2) outer complex to an inner electron donor-acceptor (EDA) complex, followed by fast reaction of the inner complex with iodine to form a triiodide ion. The pseudo-first-order rate constants were evaluated from the absorbance- and conductivity-time data. The stoichiometry and formation constants of the resulting EDA complexes have also been determined. Thermodynamic parameters, Delta H degrees and Delta S degrees , of the complexes have been determined from the temperature dependence of stability constants by Van't Hoff equation. The results indicate that iodine complexes of AM15C5 in both solvents are enthalpy stabilized but entropy destabilized. The influence of solvent properties on the kinetics and stability of the resulting charge-transfer complexes are discussed.

Molecular design of crown ethers. 21.(1,2) synthesis of novel double-armed benzo-15-crown-5 lariats and their complexation thermodynamics with light lanthanoid nitrates in acetonitrile

Three new disubstituted benzo-15-crown-5 derivatives (3-5) have been synthesized from 4',5'-bis(bromomethyl)benzo-15-crown-5 (2) and the corresponding alkanols in the presence of Na(2)S(2), and their complexation thermodynamics with light lanthanoid(III) nitrates (La-Gd) have been studied in anhydrous acetonitrile at 25 degrees C. Plots of K(S) against the reciprocal ionic diameter of lanthanoid exhibited monotonically declining pattern for the parent benzo-15-crown-5 (1) and 3 but showed a characteristic peak at Ce(3+) for 4 and 5. It is interesting to note that the simple extension of the alkyl side chains in 4 and 5 can alter the cation selectivity profiles of 1 and 3. Possessing two 2-oxapropyl groups, 3 gave a comparable K(S) for La(3+) but a significantly decreased K(S) for Ce(3+) compared with the corresponding values for 1, thus exhibiting an exceptionally high La(3+)/Ce(3+) selectivity of 11. Thermodynamically, the complexation of lanthanoid perchlorates with 1 is absolutely entropy-driven in acetonitrile, while the complexation of lanthanoid nitrates with 3-5 is primarily driven by exothermic enthalpy changes with accompanying moderate entropic gain or small entropic loss.

New Ionophoric Calix[4]diquinones: Coordination Chemistry, Electrochemistry, and X-ray Crystal Structures

A new library of ionophoric p-tert-butylcalix[4]diquinones containing ester (1), primary, secondary, and tertiary amide (2-4), and crown ether (5) substituents has been synthesized by treatment of the respective 1,3-bis-substituted p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene with Tl(OCOCF(3))(3) in trifluoroacetic acid. The structures of the free ligands 1 and 2, a p-tert-butylcalix[4]diquinone bridged at the lower rim by two linked veratrole groups (7), and a previously synthesized p-tert-butylcalix[4]diquinone bis(methyl ether) species (8) have been elucidated by X-ray crystallography. The X-ray crystal structures of 1-Sr(ClO(4))(2), 1-KClO(4), 2-NaClO(4), 4-n-BuNH(3)BF(4), 5-NaOCOCF(3), and 5-KPF(6) demonstrate that these complexes adopt the cone conformation in the solid state. Interestingly, cation-quinone oxygen atom coordination occurs at both the upper and lower rim of 2-NaClO(4) and 4-n-BuNH(3)BF(4). Solution coordination properties have been studied by both (1)H NMR and UV/vis techniques. The electrochemical properties of the "acyclic" p-tert-butylcalixdiquinones 1, 4, and 8 and their complexes have been studied using cyclic and square wave voltammetric techniques. The reduction potentials of the group 1 or 2 metal, ammonium, and alkylammonium complexes are significantly anodically shifted with respect to that of the free ligand. Addition of cations to electrochemical solutions of a p-tert-butylcalixdiquinone-crown-5 compound (5) caused large anodic shifts (by up to 555 mV in the presence of Ba(2+)) in a manner similar to that of the acyclic species.

Synthesis and Cyclic Voltammetry Studies of Copper Complexes of Bromo- and Alkoxyphenyl-Substituted Derivatives of Tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine: Influence of Cation-Alkoxy Interactions on Copper Redox Potentials

A combination of host-guest chemistry and coordination chemistry in the design of electrochemical sensors for alkali metal and ammonium ions is described. The sensor molecules are coordination complexes between a copper ion and a functionalized tripodal ligand. Upon presentation of the ion to the sensor molecule, a shift in the redox potential of the copper ion occurs. In the course of the study, three new alkoxyphenyl-substituted derivatives of the ligand tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine (TPA) were prepared and characterized. The synthesis of the new ligands involved the preparation of bromopyridyl-TPA derivatives followed by Suzuki coupling with substituted phenylboronic acids. Cyclic voltammetry studies of copper complexes of the ligands indicated that steric effects played a dominant role in the overall determination of the copper redox couple. Studies of the alkoxyphenyl ligands indicated that small but reproducible changes in the copper redox couple occurred upon presentation of a guest cation that would be expected to form a complex with the copper-ligand complex.