Structure of the Jet-Cooled 1-Naphthol Dimer Studied by IR Dip Spectroscopy: Cooperation between the π−π Interaction and the Hydrogen Bonding

Dispersion Control over Molecule Cohesion: Exploiting and Dissecting the Tipping Power of Aromatic Rings

ConspectusWe have learned over the past years how London dispersion forces can be effectively used to influence or even qualitatively tip the structure of aggregates and the conformation of single molecules. This happens despite the fact that single dispersion contacts are much weaker than competing polar forces. It is a classical case of strength by numbers, with the importance of London dispersion forces scaling with the system size. Knowledge about the tipping points, however difficult to attain, is necessary for a rational design of intermolecular forces. One requires a careful assessment of the competing interactions, either by sensitive spectroscopic techniques for the study of the isolated molecules and aggregates or by theoretical approaches. Of particular interest are the systems close to the tipping point, when dispersion interactions barely outweigh or approach the strength of the other interactions. Such subtle cases are important milestones for a scale-up to realistic multi-interaction situations encountered in the fields of life and materials science. In searching for examples that provide ideal competing interactions in complexes and small clusters, aromatic systems can offer a diverse set of molecules with a variation of dispersion and electrostatic forces that control the dominant and peripheral interactions. Our combined spectroscopic and theoretical investigations provide valuable insights into the balance of intermolecular forces because they typically allow us to switch the aromatic substituent on and off. High-resolution rotational spectroscopy serves as a benchmark for molecular structures, as correct calculations should be based on correct geometries. When discussing the competition with other noncovalent interactions, obvious competitors are directional hydrogen bonds. As a second counterweight to aryl interactions, we will discuss aurophilic/metallophilic interactions, which also have a strong stabilization with a small number of atoms involved. Vibrational spectroscopy is most sensitive to interactions of light atoms, and the competition of OH hydrogen bonds with dispersion forces in a molecular aggregate can be judged well by the OH stretching frequency. Experiments in the gas phase are ideal for gauging the accuracy of quantum chemical predictions free of solvent forces. A tight collaboration utilizing these three methods allows experiment vs experiment vs theory benchmarking of the overall influence of dispersion in molecular structures and energetics.

Structural study of 1- and 2-naphthol: new insights into the non-covalent H-H interaction in cis-1-naphthol

Previous microwave studies of naphthol monomers were supplemented by measuring spectra of all ¹³C mono-substituted isotopologues of the cis- and trans-conformers of 1-naphthol and 2-naphthol in their natural abundances. The resulting data were utilized to determine substitution structures and so-called semi-experimental effective structures. Results from electronic structure calculations show that the OH group of cis-1-naphthol points ≈6° out of plane, which is consistent with the inertial defect data of cis- and trans-1-naphthol. The non-planarity of cis-1-naphthol is a result of a close-contact H-atom-H-atom interaction. This type of H-H interaction has been the subject of much controversy in the past and we provide here an in-depth theoretical analysis of it. The naphthol system is particularly well-suited for such analysis as it provides internal standards with its four different isomers. The methods used include quantum theory of atoms in molecules, non-covalent interactions, independent gradient model, local vibrational mode, charge model 5, and natural bond orbital analyses. We demonstrate that the close-contact H-H interaction is neither a purely attractive nor repulsive interaction, but rather a mixture of the two.

Rotational analysis of naphthol-aromatic ring complexes stabilized by electrostatic and dispersion interactions

For complexes involving aromatic species, substitution effects can influence the preferred geometry. Using broadband rotational spectroscopy, we report the structures of three naphthol-aromatic ring complexes with different heteroatoms (furan and thiophene) and alkyl groups (2,5-dimethylfuran). The aim was to analyze the influence of the presence of heteroatoms or alkyl groups on the structure of the complex and the kind of intermolecular forces that control it. Face or edge arrangements can take place in these complexes via π-π or O-H⋯O/O-H⋯π interactions, respectively. All the experimentally observed complexes present O-H⋯O/O-H⋯π interactions with the hydroxyl group, with different structures and intermolecular interactions depending on the heteroatom present in the five-membered aromatic rings, yielding different symmetries in the experimental structure. Structures are experimentally identified through the use of planar moments of inertia. Further results from SAPT calculations show that dispersion and electrostatic interactions contribute similarly to the stabilization of all the studied complexes. These new spectroscopic results shed light on the influence of dispersion and hydrogen bonding in molecular aggregation of systems with substituted aromatic residues.

Isolated 2-hydroxypyrene and its dimer: a frequency- and time-resolved spectroscopic study

We investigated isolated 2-hydroxypyrene and its dimer in the gas phase by time- and frequency-resolved photoionisation with picosecond time-resolution.

Ionization-Induced π → H Site Switching in Resorcinol-Arn (n = 1 and 2) Clusters Probed by Infrared Spectroscopy

Infrared (IR) spectra of resorcinol (Rs)-Ar_n clusters (n = 1 and 2) have been measured in the neutral and cationic ground states (S₀ and D₀) by IR dip and resonance-enhanced multiphoton ionization (REMPI)-IR spectroscopy. The OH stretching vibrations in S₀ keep their frequency regardless of the number of Ar atoms and the conformation of the OH groups in Rs (rotamers RsI and RsII), demonstrating that the Ar atoms are attached to the aromatic π-ring (π-bound structure) in S₀. In the D₀ state, the IR spectra of Rs⁺-Ar_n reflect the difference in the Rs conformations (RsI⁺ and RsII⁺). For n = 1, the IR spectra of both rotamers are almost the same as those of the corresponding monomer cations, indicating that Ar ligands essentially remain π-bonded after ionization. In contrast, the IR spectra of Rs⁺-Ar₂ show hydrogen-bonded and free OH stretching vibrations, demonstrating that for a significant fraction of the clusters, the Ar atoms migrate from the π-bound site to the OH groups. The ionization-induced π → H migration yields are not unity for both rotamers RsI⁺-Ar₂ and RsII⁺-Ar₂. This result is in sharp contrast to phenol⁺-Ar₂, in which one of the Ar atoms migrates to the OH site with 100% yield. The mechanism leading to the nonunity yield in Rs⁺-Ar₂ is discussed in terms of the number of OH binding sites and Franck-Condon factors. The ionization excess energy dependence of the IR spectra of Rs⁺-Ar₂ and its Rs⁺-Ar fragments is discussed in terms of the Ar binding energies estimated from the photoionization and photodissociation efficiency spectra.

The 1-Naphthol Dimer and Its Surprising Preference for π-π Stacking over Hydrogen Bonding

Using chirped-pulse Fourier transform microwave spectroscopy, we have experimentally identified the most abundant dimer of an alcohol analogue of naphthalene, 1-naphthol. The 1-naphthol dimer features a V-shaped, partially overlapping π-π stacked structure with no canonical hydrogen bonds between the subunits. This structural assignment is in contradiction to an earlier study of the 1-naphthol dimer using UV-IR dip double resonance spectroscopy in the O-H stretch region, which assigns a π-stacked but also canonically hydrogen-bonded structure. We use an improved theoretical analysis to resolve this discrepancy and show that the new, V-shaped structure is also consistent with the previously measured UV-IR data. These new computational and spectroscopic results shed light on the complicated nature of evaluating energetics and structures for larger, dispersion-bound systems.

Toward understanding tautomeric switching in 4-hydroxynaphthaldehyde and its dimers: A DFT and quantum topology study

The electronic structures and stabilities of all benzenoid (enol) and quinonoid (keto) forms of 4-hydroxynaphthaldehyde (ALD-14) have been investigated using density functional theory (DFT) with a range of functionals and basis sets. The anti-enol form represents the global minimum energy structure. Low rotation barriers of both the hydroxyl and the aldehyde groups characterize this form. Fourier analysis of the potential energy function for rotation indicate that the conformational preference of ALD-14 is determined by both the dipole–dipole repulsion and bond moments interactions. Further, three different ALD-14 dimer complexes are investigated, i.e. head-to-tail (HT), head-to-head (HH), and stacked (S) forms. The analysis of natural bond order, quantum topology features of the Laplacian of the electron density, binding energies and structural parameters of these dimers point to comparable stabilities of the HT and S-dimers, with a preference for a stacking contact. The origin of its stability can be traced to π-conjugative, H-bonding and dispersion interactions.

Radiopharmaceutical evaluation of (131)I-protohypericin as a necrosis avid compound

Hypericin is a necrosis avid agent useful for nuclear imaging and tumor therapy. Protohypericin, with a similar structure to hypericin except poorer planarity, is the precursor of hypericin. In this study, we aimed to investigate the impact of this structural difference on self-assembly, and evaluate the necrosis affinity and metabolism in the rat model of reperfused hepatic infarction. Protohypericin appeared less aggregative in solution compared with hypericin by fluorescence analysis. Biodistribution data of (131)I-protohypericin showed the percentage of injected dose per gram of tissues (%ID/g) increased with time and reached to the maximum of 7.03 at 24 h in necrotic liver by gamma counting. The maximum ratio of target/non-target tissues was 11.7-fold in necrotic liver at 72 h. Pharmacokinetic parameters revealed that the half-life of (131)I-protohypericin was 14.9 h, enabling a long blood circulation and constant retention in necrotic regions. SPECT-CT, autoradiography, and histological staining showed high uptake of (131)I-protohypericin in necrotic tissues. These results suggest that (131)I-protohypericin is a promising necrosis avid compound with a weaker aggregation tendency compared with hypericin and it may have a broad application in imaging and oncotherapy.

Evaluation of hypericin: effect of aggregation on targeting biodistribution

Hypericin (Hy) has shown great promise as a necrosis-avid agent in cancer imaging and therapy. Given the highly hydrophobic and π-conjugated planarity characteristics, Hy tends to form aggregates. To investigate the effect of aggregation on targeting biodistribution, nonaggregated formulation (Non-Ag), aggregated formulation with overconcentrated Hy in dimethyl sulfoxide (Ag-DMSO) solution, and aggregated formulation in water solution (Ag-water) were selected by fluorescence measurement. They were labeled with ¹³¹I and evaluated for the necrosis affinity in rat model of reperfused hepatic infarction by gamma counting and autoradiography. The radioactivity ratio of necrotic liver/normal liver was 17.1, 7.9, and 6.4 for Non-Ag, Ag-DMSO, and Ag-water, respectively. The accumulation of two aggregated formulations (Ag-DMSO and Ag-water) in organs of mononuclear phagocyte system (MPS) was 2.62 ± 0.22 and 3.96 ± 0.30 %ID/g in the lung, and 1.44 ± 0.29 and 1.51 ± 0.23 %ID/g in the spleen, respectively. The biodistribution detected by autoradiography showed the same trend as by gamma counting. In conclusion, the Non-Ag showed better targeting biodistribution and less accumulation in MPS organs than aggregated formulations of Hy. The two aggregated formulations showed significantly lower and higher accumulation in targeting organ and MPS organs, respectively.

Mimicking anesthetic-receptor interactions in jets: the propofol-isopropanol cluster

The interaction of the general anesthetic propofol with an individual residue of threonine in the membrane receptors has been modeled in the gas phase by examining the adduct of propofol with the isopropanol side-chain. We determined the structural preferences of the cluster using a combination of mass-resolved laser spectroscopy and quantum mechanical calculations. The first electronic transition of propofol-isopropanol was recorded with vibrational resolution using resonant two-photon ionization (R2PI) and ion dip IR spectroscopy. The spectra obtained were compared with density-functional calculations (DFT) using the M06-2X functional in order to obtain the cluster's structure. Three isomers have been detected. The results suggest that propofol acts as a Brønsted acid, donating a proton to the isopropanol molecule in a conformation that resembles that of propofol-water, but displaced towards the aromatic ring, due to the interaction with the aliphatic side of isopropanol. The higher affinity of propofol for isopropanol compared to water may correlate with the biological role of propofol at the protein binding site. On the other hand, propofol shows a similar affinity for isopropanol and phenol, which could explain the mobility that propofol experiences inside the GABAA cavity.

Matrix isolation FT-IR and theoretical DFT/B3LYP spectrum of 1-naphthol

The FT-IR spectrum of 1-Naphthol isolated in an argon matrix is performed and compared to the infrared spectra calculated at the DFT (B3LYP)/6-31+G(d) level for cis-1-Naphthol and trans-1-Naphthol rotamers in order to clarify the existence of both rotamers in the standard temperature. Comparison of the computed and the experimental matrix spectra reveals the presence in 1-Naphthol argon matrices in the standard temperature of both cis and trans rotameric forms of 1-Naphthol, the last predominating. The relative stability of the trans-1-Naphthol rotamer has also been supported by a fit comparison between the difference of predicted total energy (ETC) of both rotamers of 0.00195 a.u. corresponding to 5.12 kJ mol(-1) and the variation of the standard free Gibbs energy of rotamerization (ΔGr°) of 5.06 kJ mol(-1). Almost all 51 active vibrational modes of 1-Naphthol have been assigned. The stretching vibration of the OH group (νOH) appears to be the unique vibrational mode distinguishing the cis-1-NpOH rotamer from the trans-1-NpOH rotamer in FT-IR spectrum.

Effect of ring torsion on intramolecular vibrational redistribution dynamics of 1,1'-binaphthyl and 2,2'-binaphthyl

The role of ring torsion in the enhancement of intramolecular vibrational energy redistribution (IVR) in aromatic molecules was investigated by conducting excitation and dispersed fluorescence spectroscopy of 1,1'-binaphthyl (1,1'-BN) and 2,2'-BN. The dispersed fluorescence spectra of 1,1'-BN in the origin region of S(1)-S(0) were well resolved, which presented 25-27 cm(-1) gaps of torsional mode in the ground state. The overall profile of the dispersed spectra of 1,1'-BN is similar to that of naphthalene. In contrast, the spectra of 2,2'-BN were not resolved due to the multitude of the active torsional modes. In both cases, dissipative IVR was observed to take place with a relatively small excess vibrational energy: 237.5 cm(-1) for 1,1'-BN and 658 cm(-1) for 2,2'-BN, which clearly shows that ring torsion efficiently enhances the IVR rate. Ab initio and density functional theory calculations with medium-sized basis sets showed that the torsional potential of 1,1'-BN has a very flat minimum over the range of torsional angles from ca. 60° to 120°, whereas that of 2,2'-BN showed two well-defined potential minima at ca. 40° and 140°, in resemblance to the case of biphenyl. In this work, we propose that aromatic molecules be classified into "strong" and "weak" torsional hindrance cases: molecules with strong hindrance case show shorter torsional progressions and more effective IVR dynamics than do those with weak hindrance.