On the interaction of the vanadyl(IV) cation with lactose

A new vanadyl(IV) complex of the disaccharide lactose was obtained in aqueous solution at pH = 13. The sodium salt of the complex, of composition Na4VO(lactose)2].3H2O, has been characterized by elemental analysis and by ultraviolet-visible, diffuse reflectance, and infrared spectroscopies. Its magnetic susceptibility and thermal behavior were also investigated. The inhibitory effect on alkaline phosphatase activity was tested for this compound as well as for the vanadyl(IV) complexes with maltose, sucrose, glucose, fructose, and galactose. For comparative purposes, the free ligands and the vanadyl(IV) cation were also studied. The free sugars and the sucrose/VO complex exhibited the lowest inhibitory effect. Lactose-VO, maltose-VO, and the free VO2+ cation showed an intermediate inhibition potential, whereas the monosaccharide/VO complexes appeared as the most potent inhibitory agents.