Crystal structures and magnetic properties of tetranuclear copper(II) complexes of N-(2-hydroxymethylphenyl)salicylideneimine with a defective double-cubane core

Tetranuclear Cu(II) complexes of N-(2-hydroxymethylphenyl)salicylideneimine (H₂L1-H) and its homologues (5-CH₃: H₂L1-Me, 5-Cl: H₂L1-Cl), [Cu(L1-H)]₄ · 3H₂O (1), [Cu(L1-Me)]₄ · 2CH₂Cl₂ (2), and [Cu(L1-Cl)]₄ · 2CH₂Cl₂ (3), have been characterized by X-ray crystal structure analyses and magnetic measurements. The structure analyses revealed that the complexes 1-3 have a defective double-cubane tetra copper(II) core connected by μ₃-alkoxo bridges. The intramolecular Cu?Cu distances are in the range from 5.251(2)-5.256(3) Å for the longest to 3.0518(9)-3.092(2) Å for the shortest. Each Cu(II) ion has a square-pyramidal geometry and the dihedral angles between adjacent Cu(II) basal planes are almost right angles. Magnetic measurements of the present complexes indicate that weak antiferromagnetic interactions (J=−15 to −19 cm⁻¹) between neighboring copper(II) ions are dominant in these tetracopper cores.     

The role of 4,4′-trimethylene-dipyridine flexibility in the construction of hybrid networks templated on aromatic alcohols

A series of zinc phosphite hybrid structures with trimethylene dipyridine as the linking ligand and templated on the aromatic alcohols, hydroquinone, 1,2,3-trihydroxybenzene, nitrophenol, and bromophenol are reported. The aromatic alcohols interact with the framework by hydrogen bonding to oxygen atoms that bridge zinc and phosphorus atoms in the inorganic portion of the network. In addition, three hydrogen-bonded networks that contain trimethylene-dipyridine and either hydroquinone or 1,2,3-trihydroxybenzene are reported. In these structures, the aromatic alcohol acts as a hydrogen bond donor to trimethylene-dipyridine. The flexibility of trimethylene-dipyridine is important to the construction of the new frameworks. Calculations using PM5 parameters demonstrate that trimethylene-dipyridine can adopt a wide variety of conformations with a minimal energy expense.     

Antiferromagnetic interactions through phenoxo bridges and lattice water: Synthesis, structure, and magnetic properties of new Mn(III) Schiff base complexes in combination with thiocyanate ligand

The Schiff base ligands, N,N′-bis(2-hydroxyacetophenone)-1,2-diaminoethane (acphenH₂) and N,N′-bis(2-hydroxyacetophenone)-1,3-diaminopropane (acphpnH₂), prepared in situ were used to synthesise two new Mn(III) complexes which were characterised by crystallography and variable temperature magnetic measurements. [Mn(acphen)NCS]₂ is a phenoxo-bridged dimeric compound with the thiocyanate coordinating in the usual bent mode (Mn-N-C angle, 152°) and is weakly antiferromagnetic. Since there are no significant inter-dimer contacts in the crystal, the low temperature magnetic behaviour is influenced by single ion zero-field splitting. Exact diagonalisation of the spin Hamiltonian was performed to derive the following parameters: J = −0.7 cm⁻¹, D = −0.6 cm⁻¹. Mn(acphpn)(H₂O)NCS is monomeric with an unusual linearly coordinated thiocyanate (Mn-N-C angle, 178°). Two lattice water molecules link the Mn(III) complex molecules through hydrogen bonds to form one-dimensional chains in the crystal. Magnetic exchange along the chain makes this compound also weakly antiferromagnetic with J ∼ -2 cm⁻¹.     

Syntheses and photophysical properties of a series of [2:2] silver(I) metallocycles

A series of methoxy-protected N₂O₄-donor Schiff base ligands have been synthesised and fully characterised including X-ray crystallography. Upon complexation with silver(I) [2:2] metallocycles have been formed of various sizes from 10-membered to 24-membered depending on the diamine of the ligand used in forming the Schiff base. The luminescence behaviour of the silver dimers has been studied and the smallest metallocycle shows argentophilic interactions in the solid state.     

Photoaffinity Labeling of a Neuronal Octopamine Receptor

Abstract: The invertebrate aminergic neurotransmitter and neuromodulator octopamine (OA) acts at both neuronal and nonneuronal receptors that appear to have distinct pharmacological characteristics. The current work uses a potent and specific OA photoaffinity ligand, tritiated 2(2,6-diethyl-4-azidophenylimino)imidazolidine ([³H]NC-5Z), to identify and characterize a putative neuronal OA receptor protein in membranes from nerve tissue of the desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria . Under nonphotolyzing conditions, [³H]NC-5Z demonstrated high-affinity binding ( K _D = 2.5 ± 0.3 n M ; B _max = 702 fmol/mg of protein) to a single class of noninteracting sites. The absolute and rank order potency of binding of both agonists and antagonists was highly correlated ( r = 0.99) with their known ability to displace [³H]OA binding to locust neuronal membranes and was consistent with the labeling of a class 3 OA receptor. Under photolyzing conditions, [³H]NC-5Z demonstrated irreversible binding that was resistant to trichloroacetic acid and methanol, displaceable by OA and other octopaminergic agonists and antagonists, soluble in sodium dodecyl sulfate, and only sparingly soluble in nonionic detergents. Membrane-bound [³H]NC-5Z, solubilized with Nonidet P-40, bound specifically only to immobilized concanavalin A or lentil lectin. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of photolyzed proteins under reducing conditions revealed a single peak of radioactivity with a molecular mass of 53 ± 5 kDa. Taken together, these biochemical and pharmacological results support the identity of this protein peak as that of the neuronal OA3 receptor.     

Elevated metals compromise repair of oxidative DNA damage via the base excision repair pathway: implications of pathologic iron overload in the brain on integrity of neuronal DNA

Tissue-specific iron content is tightly regulated to simultaneously satisfy specialized metabolic needs and avoid cytotoxicity. In the brain, disruption of iron homeostasis may occur in acute as well as progressive injuries associated with neuronal dysfunction and death. We hypothesized that adverse effects of disrupted metal homeostasis on brain function may involve impairment of DNA repair processes. Because in the brain, the base excision repair (BER) pathway is central for handling oxidatively damaged DNA, we investigated effects of elevated iron and zinc on key BER enzymes. In vitro DNA repair assays revealed inhibitory effects of metals on BER activities, including the incision of abasic sites, 5'-flap cleavage, gap filling DNA synthesis and ligation. Using the comet assay, we showed that while metals at concentrations which inhibit BER activities in in vitro assays, did not induce direct genomic damage in cultured primary neurons, they significantly delayed repair of genomic DNA damage induced by sublethal exposure to H₂O₂. Thus, in the brain even a mild transient metal overload, may adversely affect the DNA repair capacity and thereby compromise genomic integrity and initiate long-term deleterious sequelae including neuronal dysfunction and death.     

New light on tautomerism of purines and pyrimidines and its biological and genetic implications

The tautomerism of the natural 1-substituted pyrimidines and 9-substituted purines found in nucleic acids has been re-examined in the light of new experimental data on various nitrogen heterocycles in solution, in the gas phase and, in part, in low-temperature inert matrices. The results are compared with those obtained by quantum chemical calculations, including improved versions of the latter. Examples are presented of natural nucleosides which exhibit appreciable tautomerism in solution,e.g. formycins A and B, isoguanosine, but are not found in DNA. Illustrations are given of synthetic promutagenic nucleosides with pronounced tautomerism in solution relevant to their role in mutagenesis, such as the N⁴-hydroxy-and N⁴-methoxy cytidines. The amino-imino tautomeric equilibria of the promutagenic N⁶-hydroxy-and N⁶ -methoxy-adenosines are highly dependent on the solvent medium, the proportion of the imino species varying from 10% in CCl₄ to 90% in aqueous medium. The type of base pairing of these is dependent on the conformation of the exocyclic hydroxy or methoxy groups. At the monomer level, addition of a potentially complementary base leads to a shift in the tautomeric equilibrium in favour of the species which pairs with this base. Biological and genetical implications of the foregoing are described.     

Angiotensin II-Like Material Extracted from the Rat Brain Is Distinct from Authentic Angiotensin II

Specific radioimmunoassay and radioreceptor assay for angiotensin II (A II) were used for the possible identification of this peptide in the rat brain. An A II-like material (A II-LM) was detected with both assays applied to acidic extracts of various brain structures. The regional distribution of A II-LM was uneven, but absolute levels (in A II equivalents) could not be accurately determined, as they were highly dependent on the assay used. Partial purification of A II-LM by Sep-Pak C 18 chromatography and affinity chromatography using anti-A II antibodies bound to Ultrogel gave a compound coeluting with authentic A II in reverse-phase HPLC. However, gel filtration through Sephadex G-25 and TSK Spherogel 3000 SW as well as anion exchange HPLC demonstrated that A II-LM did not correspond to authentic A II. Partial characterization of A II-LM indicated that this compound was probably a peptide with an apparent molecular weight of 5,000-7,000 (instead of 1,046 for A II) and more polar but less positively charged than A II. Whether A II-LM is, in fact, the endogenous ligand of A II binding sites in brain remains an interesting hypothesis for further investigations.     

A novel deletion found during cloning of a synthetic palindromic DNA

A 212-bp palindromic DNA comprising two copies of the left end of bacteriophage Mu was assembled from chemically synthesized oligonucleotides and inserted into plasmid pUC9. When cloned and propagated in Escherichia coli, the palindrome was found to be unstable and was generally lost. However, in a few cases, a precise, asymmetric deletion of one half of the insert was observed. This pattern of deletion suggests that the symmetry axis region of the palindrome was involved as recognition site in the deletion process.     

Identification of a mutation that relieves gamma-glutamyl kinase from allosteric feedback inhibition by proline

A 1.75-kb DNA fragment containing the entire Escherichia coli proB+ gene has been sequenced. The proB locus encodes the structural gene for gamma-glutamyl kinase (GK), the enzyme responsible for the first step in proline biosynthesis, and the primary regulatory point of the pathway. We have previously reported the nucleotide (nt) sequence of a mutant proB gene isolated from an E. coli strain resistant to the toxic analog of proline, 3,4-dehydro-DL-proline (DHP). This mutant gene encodes a GK which is refractory to allosteric feedback inhibition by proline (DHPR). Comparison of the proB+ and DHPR proB sequences revealed a single base difference, an A-T to C-G transversion localized at nt position 428 within the amino acid (aa) coding region of proB. This mutation predicts an aa change from glutamic acid in the wild-type (wt) enzyme to alanine in the DHPR enzyme.