REVIEW: metal complexes as urease inhibitors

Urease plays a significant role in the pathogenesis of several diseases and also has practical implications in other fields, such as agriculture or chemical analysis. Among the multitude of chemical species known to inhibit urease, metal complexes stand out as a special category due to their specific mechanism of action, distinct from purely organic substances. Their inhibitory activity seems to depend on the type of metal and its oxidation state as well as on the coordination environment of the central atom. Furthermore, the study of the interaction between metal ions and their complexes with urease renders valuable insights into detailed catalytic mechanisms of this enzyme. This brief survey attempts to provide an overview of the published research on urease inhibition by metal complexes.     

Visualizing Biological Copper Storage: The Importance of Thiolate-Coordinated Tetranuclear Clusters

Bacteria possess cytosolic proteins (Csp3s) capable of binding large quantities of copper and preventing toxicity. Crystal structures of a Csp3 plus increasing amounts of Cu^I provide atomic-level information about how a storage protein loads with metal ions. Many more sites are occupied than Cu^I equiv added, with binding by twelve central sites dominating. These can form [Cu₄(S-Cys)₄] intermediates leading to [Cu₄(S-Cys)₅]⁻, [Cu₄(S-Cys)₆]²⁻, and [Cu₄(S-Cys)₅(O-Asn)]⁻ clusters. Construction of the five Cu^I sites at the opening of the bundle lags behind the main core, and the two least accessible sites at the opposite end of the bundle are occupied last. Facile Cu^I cluster formation, reminiscent of that for inorganic complexes with organothiolate ligands, is largely avoided in biology but is used by proteins that store copper in the cytosol of prokaryotes and eukaryotes, where this reactivity is also key to toxicity.     

Heterologous Expression and Engineering of the Nitrogenase Cofactor Biosynthesis Scaffold NifEN

NifEN plays a crucial role in the biosynthesis of nitrogenase, catalyzing the final step of cofactor maturation prior to delivering the cofactor to NifDK, the catalytic component of nitrogenase. The difficulty in expressing NifEN, a complex, heteromultimeric metalloprotein sharing structural/functional homology with NifDK, is a major challenge in the heterologous expression of nitrogenase. Herein, we report the expression and engineering of Azotobacter vinelandii NifEN in Escherichia coli. Biochemical and spectroscopic analyses demonstrate the integrity of the heterologously expressed NifEN in composition and functionality and, additionally, the ability of an engineered NifEN variant to mimic NifDK in retaining the matured cofactor at an analogous cofactor‐binding site. This is an important step toward piecing together a viable pathway for the heterologous expression of nitrogenase and identifying variants for the mechanistic investigation of this enzyme.     

Evidence of Native Metal–S2−–Metallothionein Complexes Confirmed by the Analysis of Cup1 Divalent‐Metal‐Ion Binding Properties

It has previously been shown that recombinant synthesis, under metal‐supplemented conditions, of diverse metallothioneins (MTs) results in the recovery of a subpopulation of S^2?‐containing complexes in addition to the S^2?‐devoid canonical metal–MT species. Further significance of this finding has remained veiled by the possibility of it being a mere consequence of synthesis in a heterologous bacterial system. Herein, we present definitive evidence that S^2? ligands are also constituents of native metal–MT complexes. Because, although practically universal, the highest S^2? content is incorporated by copper‐thioneins when coordinating divalent metal ions, we adapted the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Cup1 protein, which is the most paradigmatic copper‐thionein, as an experimental model. Most significantly, native Cd–Cup1 complexes were purified and fully spectroscopically and spectrometrically characterized from the 301N mutant yeast strain, which allows Cup1 synthesis even in the absence of copper. These results undoubtedly revealed the presence of a Cd–S^2?–Cup1 species in native preparations, which were only recovered when carefully avoiding the use of ion‐exchange chromatography in the purification protocol. Furthermore, complete analysis of recombinant (Escherichia coli) Zn–Cup1, Cd–Cup1, and Cu–Cup1 and those complexes that result from Zn/Cd and Zn/Cu replacements in vitro and acidification/renaturalization processes yielded a comprehensive and comparative overview of the metal‐binding abilities of Cup1. Overall, we consider the main conclusions of this study to go beyond the mere study of the particular Cup1 MT, so that they should be considered to delineate a new point of view on the interaction between copper‐thioneins and divalent metal ions, still an unexplored aspect in MT research.     

Dissecting the intimate mechanism of cyanation of {2Fe3S} complexes related to the active site of all-iron hydrogenases by DFT analysis of energetics, transition states, intermediates and products in the carbonyl substitution pathway

A bridging carbonyl intermediate with key structural elements of the diiron sub-site of all-iron hydrogenase has been experimentally observed in the CN/CO substitution pathway of the {2Fe3S} carbonyl precursor, [Fe(2)(CO)(5){MeSCH(2)C(Me)(CH(2)S)(2)}]. Herein we have used density functional theory (DFT) to dissect the overall substitution pathway in terms of the energetics and the structures of transition states, intermediates and products. We show that the formation of bridging CO transitions states is explicitly involved in the intimate mechanism of dicyanation. The enhanced rate of monocyanation of {2Fe3S} over the {2Fe2S} species [Fe(2)(CO)(6){CH(2)(CH(2)S)(2)}] is found to rest with the ability of the thioether ligand to both stabilise a mu-CO transition state and act as a good leaving group. In contrast, the second cyanation step of the {2Fe3S} species is kinetically slower than for the {2Fe2S} monocyanide because the Fe2 atom is deactivated by coordination of the electron-donating thioether group. In addition, hindered rotation and the reaction coordinate of the approaching CN(-) group, are other factors which explain reactivity differences in {2Fe2S} and {2Fe3S} systems. The intermediate species formed in the second cyanation step of {2Fe3S} species is a mu-CO species, confirming the structural assignment made on the basis of FT-IR data (S. J. George, Z. Cui, M. Razavet, C. J. Pickett, Chem. Eur. J. 2002, 8, 4037-4046). In support of this we find that computed and experimental IR frequencies of structurally characterised {2Fe3S} species and those of the bridging carbonyl intermediate are in excellent agreement. In a wider context, the study may provide some insight into the reactivity of dinuclear systems in which neighbouring group on-off coordination plays a role in substitution pathways.     

Effects of geometric isomerism and anions on the kinetics and mechanism of the stepwise formation of long-range DNA interstrand cross-links by dinuclear platinum antitumor complexes

Reported herein is a detailed study of the kinetics and mechanism of formation of a 1,4-GG interstrand cross-link by the dinuclear platinum anticancer compound [15N][{cis-PtCl(NH3)2}2{mu-NH2(CH2)6NH2}]2+ (1,1/c,c (1)). The reaction of [15N]1 with 5'-{d(ATATGTACATAT)2} (I) has been studied by [1H,15N] HSQC NMR spectroscopy in the presence of different concentrations of phosphate. In contrast with the geometric trans isomer (1,1/t,t), there was no evidence for an electrostatic preassociation of 1,1/c,c with the polyanionic DNA surface, and the pseudo-first-order rate constant for the aquation of [(15)N]1 was actually slightly higher (rather than lower) than that in the absence of DNA. When phosphate is absent, the overall rate of formation of the cross-link is quite similar for the two geometric isomers, occurring slightly faster for 1,1/t,t. A major difference in the DNA binding pathways is the observation of phosphate-bound intermediates only in the case of 1,1/c,c. 15 mM phosphate causes a dramatic slowing in the overall rate of formation of DNA interstrand cross-links due to both the slow formation and slow closure of the phosphate-bound monofunctional adduct. A comparison of the molecular models of the bifunctional adducts of the two isomers shows that helical distortion is minimal and globally the structures of the 1,4 interstrand cross-links are quite similar. The effect of carrier ligand was investigated by similar studies of the ethylenediamine derivative [15N]1-en. A pKa value of 5.43 was determined for the [15N]1,1/c,c-en diaquated species. The rate of reaction of [15N]1-en with duplex I is similar to that of 1,1/c,c and the overall conformation of the final adduct appears to be similar. The significance of these results to the development of "second-generation" polynuclear platinum clinical candidates based on the 1,1/c,c chelate (dach) series is discussed.     

Electrochemical insights into the mechanisms of proton reduction by [Fe2(CO)6{micro-SCH2N(R)CH2S}] complexes related to the [2Fe](H) subsite of [FeFe]hydrogenase

Electrochemical investigations on a structural analogue of the [2Fe](H) subsite of [FeFe]H(2)ases, namely, [Fe(2)(CO)(6){micro-SCH(2)N(CH(2)CH(2)- OCH(3))CH(2)S}] (1), were conducted in MeCN/NBu(4)PF(6) in the presence of HBF(4)/Et(2)O or HOTs. Two different catalytic proton reduction processes operate, depending on the strength and the concentration of the acid used. The first process, which takes place around -1.2 V for both HBF(4)/Et(2)O and HOTs, is limited by the slow release of H(2) from the product of the {2 H(+)/2 e} pathway, 1-2H. The second catalytic process, which occurs at higher acid concentrations, takes place at different potentials depending on the acid present. We propose that this second mechanism is initiated by protonation of 1-2H when HBF(4)/Et(2)O is used, whereas the reduction of 1-2H is the initial step in the presence of the weaker acid HOTs. The potential of the second process, which occurs around -1.4 V (reduction potential of 1-3H(+)) or around -1.6 V (the reduction potential of 1-2H) is thus dependent on the strength of the available proton source.     

Unsymmetrical Binding Modes of the HOPNO Inhibitor of Tyrosinase: From Model Complexes to the Enzyme

The deciphering of the binding mode of tyrosinase (Ty) inhibitors is essential to understand how to regulate the tyrosinase activity. In this paper, by combining experimental and theoretical methods, we studied an unsymmetrical tyrosinase functional model and its interaction with 2‐hydroxypyridine‐N‐oxide (HOPNO), a new and efficient competitive inhibitor for bacterial Ty. The tyrosinase model was a dinuclear copper complex bridged by a chelated ring with two different complexing arms (namely (bis(2‐ethylpyridyl)amino)methyl and (bis(2‐methylpyridyl)amino)methyl). The geometrical asymmetry of the complex induces an unsymmetrical binding of HOPNO. Comparisons have been made with the binding modes obtained on similar symmetrical complexes. Finally, by using quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) calculations, we studied the binding mode in tyrosinase from a bacterial source. A new unsymmetrical binding mode was obtained, which was linked to the second coordination sphere of the enzyme.