Molecular basis of the recognition process: hydrogen-bonding patterns in the guanine primary recognition site of ribonuclease T1

Investigation of the intrinsic H-bonding pattern of the guanine complex with a sizable segment (from Asn43 to Glu46) of the primary recognition site (PRS) in RNase T1 at the B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) level of theory enables the electronic density characteristics of the H-bonding patterns of the guanine-PRS complexes to be identified. The perfect H-bonding pattern in the guanine recognition site is achieved through the guanine complex interactions with the large segment of the PRS. Two significant short H-bonds, O epsilon 1...HN1 and O epsilon 2...HN2, have been identified. The similar short H-bond distances found in the anionic GC- base pair and in this study suggest that the short hydrogen-bond distances may be characteristic of the multiple H-bonded anionic nucleobases. The H-bonding energy distribution, the geometric analysis of the H-bonding pattern, and the electron structure characteristics of the H-bonds in the guanine PRS of RNase T1 all suggest that the O epsilon 1...HN1 and O epsilon 2...HN2 side-chain H-bonds dominate the binding at the guanine recognition site of RNase T1. Also, the geometry evidence, the electron structure characteristics, and the properties of the bond critical points of the H-bonds reveal that the side-chain H-bonding and the main-chain H-bonding are mutually intensifying. Thus the positive cooperativity between Asn43 to Tyr45 and Glu46 is proposed.     

Magnitudes and chemical consequences of R(3)N(+)-C-H...O[double bond]C hydrogen bonding

The magnitude of the stabilizing interaction between an aliphatic C[bond]H bond attached to an ammonium nitrogen and a carbonyl oxygen was evaluated by ab initio calculations at the MP2/6-311++G** level of theory. Attractive R(3)N(+)-C-H...O[double bond]C interactions play an important role in supramolecular recognition and various types of stereoselective catalysis. Our calculations show that R(3)N(+)-C-H...O[double bond]C is the strongest hydrogen bond of the C-H...O type known to date. Such hydrogen bonds remain as stabilizing interactions even in water for amide acceptors.     

Hydrogen-bonding interaction in a complex of amino acid with urea studied by DFT calculations

Theoretical studies on hydrogen-bonded complexes between amino acids (glycine, alanine, and leucine) and urea in gas phase have been carried out using density functional theory (DFT) and ab initio methods at the B3LYP/6-311++g** and MP2/6-311++g** theory levels. The structures, binding energy, Chelpg (charges from electrostatic potentials using a grid-based method) charge distribution, and bond characteristics of the mentioned complexes were calculated. Urea is a good H-bond donor and an excellent receptor for highly electronegative atoms like O and N, through the formation of two or more hydrogen bonds. The NH₂ and COOH groups of amino acids can form several different types of H-bonds with urea molecular, as well as C^αH and alkyl side chains. The calculated high binding energy also suggests multiple H-bonds formed in one complex. The OH···O contact is the strongest hydrogen bond interaction with H···O separation around 1.65 Å and its relevant angle close to 176°. The closely linear amide H-bonds NH···O and OH···N strongly stabilize the amino acid–urea complex with H···O separation between 1.89 and 2.38 Å. The weaker CH···O/N H-bonds are also discussed as significant interaction in biological systems involving amino acids.     

Evidence for helical structure in a tetramer of α2-8 sialic acid: unveiling a structural antigen

Characteristic H-bonding patterns define secondary structure in proteins and nucleic acids. We show that similar patterns apply for α2-8 sialic acid (SiA) in H(2)O and that H-bonds define its structure. A (15)N,(13)C α2-8 SiA tetramer, (SiA)(4), was used as a model system for the polymer. At 263 K, we detected intra-residue through-H-bond J couplings between (15)N and C8 for residues R-I-R-III of the tetramer, indicating H-bonds between the (15)N's and the O8's of these residues. Additional J couplings between the (15)N's and C2's of the adjacent residues confirm the putative H-bonds. NH groups showing this long-range correlation also experience slower (1)H/(2)H exchange. Additionally, detection of couplings between H7 and C2 for R-II and R-III implies that the conformations of the linkers between these residues are different than in the monomers. These structural elements are consistent with two left-handed helical models: 2 residues/turn (2(4) helix) and 4 residues/turn (1(4) helix). To discriminate between models, we resorted to (1)H,(1)H NOEs. The 2(4) helical model is in better agreement with the experimental data. We provide direct evidence of H-bonding for (SiA)(4) and show how H-bonds can be a determining factor for shaping its 3D structure.     

Electronic properties of multifurcated bent hydrogen bonds CH3...Y and CH2...Y

H-bonding angle angleYHX has an important effect on the electronic properties of the H-bond Y...HX, such as intra- and intermolecular hyperconjugations and rehybridization, and topological properties of electron density. We studied the multifurcated bent H-bonds of the proton donors H3CZ (Z = F, Cl, Br), H2CO and H2CF2 with the proton acceptors Cl(-) and Br(-) at the four high levels of theory: MP2/6-311++G(d,p), MP2/6-311++G(2df,2p), MP2/6-311++G(3df,3pd) and QCISD/6-311++G(d,p), and found that they are all blue-shifted. These complexes have large interaction energies, 7-12 kcal mol(-1), and large blue shifts, delta r(HC) = -0.0025 --0.006 A and delta v(HC) = 30-90 cm(-1). The natural bond orbital analysis shows that the blue shifts of these H-bonds Y...HnCZ are mainly caused by three factors: rehybridization; indirect intermolecular hyperconjugation n(Y) -->sigma*(CZ), in that the electron density from n(Y) of the proton acceptor is transferred not to sigma*(CH), but to sigma*(CZ) of the donor; intramolecular hyperconjugation n(Z) -->sigma*(CH), in that the electron density in sigma*(CH) comes back to n(Z) of the donor such that the occupancy in sigma*(CH) decreases. The topological properties of the electron density of the bifurcated H-bonds Y...H2CZ are similar to those of the usual linear H-bonds, there is a bond critical point between Y and each hydrogen, and a ring critical point inside the tetragon YHCH. However, the topological properties of electron density of the trifurcated H-bonds Y...H3CZ are essentially different from those of linear H-bonds, in that the intermolecular bond critical point, which represents a closed-shell interaction, is not between Y and hydrogen, but between Y and carbon.     

Hydrogen-bonding partner of the proton-conducting histidine in the influenza m2 proton channel revealed from (1)h chemical shifts

The influenza M2 protein conducts protons through a critical histidine (His) residue, His37. Whether His37 only interacts with water to relay protons into the virion or whether a low-barrier hydrogen bond (LBHB) also exists between the histidines to stabilize charges before proton conduction is actively debated. To address this question, we have measured the imidazole (1)H(N) chemical shifts of His37 at different temperatures and pH using 2D (15)N-(1)H correlation solid-state NMR. At low temperature, the H(N) chemical shifts are 8-15 ppm at all pH values, indicating that the His37 side chain forms conventional hydrogen bonds (H-bonds) instead of LBHBs. At ambient temperature, the dynamically averaged H(N) chemical shifts are 4.8 ppm, indicating that the H-bonding partner of the imidazole is water instead of another histidine in the tetrameric channel. These data show that His37 forms H-bonds only to water, with regular strength, thus supporting the His-water proton exchange model and ruling out the low-barrier H-bonded dimer model.     

The effect of polarization on multiple hydrogen-bond formation in models of self-assembling materials

We report density functional theory calculations at the B3LYP/D95(d,p) level on several different cyclic H-bonding dimers, where the monomers of each are connected by a pair of N-H···O=C H-bonding interactions, and the H-bonding donors and acceptors on each monomer are separated by polarizable spacers. Depending on the structures, the individual H-bonds vary in strength (enthalpy) by over a factor of four, from 2.41 to 10.99 kcal/mol. We attribute most of the variation in interaction energies to differences in the extent of polarization due to each of the H-bonds, which can either combine constructively or destructively. The dipole-dipole interactions between the pair of H-bonds also contribute somewhat to the relative stabilities. The relevance of these results to the design of self-assembling materials is discussed.     

Intramolecular hydrogen bonding and cooperative interactions in carbohydrates via the molecular tailoring approach

In spite of many theoretical and experimental attempts for understanding intramolecular hydrogen bonding (H-bonding) in carbohydrates, a direct quantification of individual intramolecular H-bond energies and the cooperativity among the H-bonded networks has not been reported in the literature. The present work attempts, for the first time, a direct estimation of individual intramolecular O-H...O interaction energies in sugar molecules using the recently developed molecular tailoring approach (MTA). The estimated H-bond energies are in the range of 1.2-4.1 kcal mol(-1). It is seen that the OH...O equatorial-equatorial interaction energies lie between 1.8 and 2.5 kcal mol(-1), with axial-equatorial ones being stronger (2.0-3.5 kcal mol(-1)). The strongest bonds are nonvicinal axial-axial H-bonds (3.0-4.1 kcal mol(-1)). This trend in H-bond energies is in agreement with the earlier reports based on the water-water H-bond angle, solvent-accessible surface area (SASA), and (1)H NMR analysis. The contribution to the H-bond energy from the cooperativity is also estimated using MTA. This contribution is seen to be typically between 0.1 and 0.6 kcal mol(-1) when H-bonds are a part of a relatively weak equatorial-equatorial H-bond network and is much higher (0.5-1.1 kcal mol(-1)) when H-bonds participate in an axial-axial H-bond network.     

Variable-temperature X-ray crystallographic and DFT computational study of the N-H...O/N...H-O tautomeric competition in 1-(Arylazo)-2-naphthols. Outline of a transition-state hydrogen-bond theory

Phenyl-substituted 1-arylazo-2-naphthols (AAN) display ...HN-N=C-C=O... <==>...N=N-C=C-OH... ketohydrazone-azoenol tautomerism and can form intramolecular resonance-assisted H-bonds from pure N-H...O to pure N...H-O through tautomeric and dynamically disordered N-H...O <==>N...H-O bonds according to the electronic properties of their substituents. Three compounds of this series (m-OCH(3)-AAN = mOM; p-Cl-AAN = pCl; and p-NMe(2)-AAN = pNM2) have been studied by X-ray crystallography at four temperatures (100-295 K), showing that the remarkably short H-bonds formed (2.53 < or = d(N...O) < or = 2.55 A) are a pure N-H...O in mOM, a dynamically disordered mixture in pCl (N-H...O:N...H-O = 69:31 at 100 K), and a statically disordered mixture in pNM2 (N-H...O:N...H-O = 21:79 at 100 K). These compounds, integrated by the p-H-, p-NO(2)-, p-F-, and p-O(-)-substituted derivatives, have been emulated by DFT methods (B3LYP/6-31+G(d,p) level) with full geometry optimization of the stationary points along the proton-transfer (PT) pathway: N-H...O and N...H-O ground states and N...H...O transition state. Analysis of DFT-calculated energies and geometries by the methods of the rate-equilibrium Marcus theory shows that all H-bond features (stability and tautomerism, as well as position and height of the PT barrier) can be coherently interpreted in the frame of the transition-state (or activated-complex) theory by considering the bond as a chemical reaction N-H...O <==> N...H...O <==> N...H-O which is bimolecular in both directions and proceeds via the N...H...O PT transition state (the activated complex).     

Density functional studies on the effects of hydrogen bonding on the formation of a charge-transfer complex between p-benzoquinone and 2,6-dimethoxyphenol

The ability to form a ground-state charge-transfer (CT) complex between an electron acceptor, p-benzoquinone (BQ) and an electron donor, 2,6-dimethoxyphenol (DMOPh) was found to be enhanced by H-bonding of BQ to a hydrogen-bond donor, trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) and H-bonding DMOPh to a hydrogen-bond acceptor, 4-(N,N-dimethylamino)pyridine (DMAPy) [Chem. Phys. Lett. 2005, 401, 200]. Here is reported density functional theory (DFT) calculations to study the effect of H-bonding to electron donor and electron acceptor moieties on the ground-state CT complex formation ability between the aforementioned electron donor/acceptor pair. DFT calculations using B3LYP with the 6-311G(d,p) basis set show that the HOMO and LUMO energies of BQ drop on H-bonding to TFA through its C=O groups and the HOMO and LUMO energies of DMOPh increase on H-bonding to DMAPy via its O-H group. BQ molecules hydrogen-bonded as 1:1 and 1:2 complexes to TFA act as stronger acceptors than the bare molecule, while 1:1 complexes of DMOPh and DMAPy act as better donors. Vertical excitation energies for electronic transitions from the ground state to the first few excited states of BQ, DMOPh, DMAPy, and their different complexes have been investigated in the framework of time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) to simulate and interpret experimental ultraviolet absorption spectra. Good agreement between experimental and calculated spectra is established. The enhancement of the CT complex formation ability between the BQ and DMOPh pair is favored by the strong H-bonding interaction of BQ with TFA as well as by the H-bonding interaction of DMOPh with DMAPy.     

Influence of H-bond strength on chelate cooperativity

Intermolecular complexes formed between metalloporphyrins and pyridine ligands equipped with multiple H-bond donors and acceptors have been used to measure the free energy contributions due to intramolecular ether-phenol H-bonding in the 24 different supramolecular architectures using chemical double mutant cycles in toluene. The ether-phenol interactions are relatively weak, and there are significant populations of partially bound states where between zero and four intramolecular H-bonds are made in addition to the porphyrin-ligand coordination interaction. The complexes were analyzed as ensembles of partially bound states to determine the effective molarities for the intramolecular interactions by comparison with the corresponding intermolecular ether-phenol H-bonds. The properties of the ether-phenol interactions were compared with phosphonate diester-phenol interactions in a closely related ligand system, which has more powerful H-bond acceptor oxygens positioned at the same location on the ligand framework. This provides a comparison of the properties of weak and strong H-bonds embedded in the same 24 supramolecular architectures. When the product of the intermolecular association constant and the effective molarity KEM > 1, there is a linear increase in the free energy contribution due to H-bonding with log EM, because the intramolecular interactions contribute fully to the stability of the complex. When KEM < 1, the H-bonded state is not significantly populated, and there is no impact on the overall stability of the complex. Intermolecular phosphonate diester-phenol H-bonds are 2 orders of magnitude stronger than ether-phenol H-bonds in toluene, so for the phosphonate diester ligand system, 23 of the 24 supramolecular architectures make intramolecular H-bonds. However, only 8 of these architectures lead to detectable H-bonding in the ether ligand system. The other 15 complexes have a suitable geometry for formation of H-bonds, but the ether-phenol interaction is not strong enough to overcome the reorganization costs associated with making intramolecular contacts, i.e., KEM < 1 for the ether ligands, and KEM > 1 for the phosphonate diester ligands. The values of EM measured for two different types of H-bond acceptor are linearly correlated, which suggests that EM is a property of the supramolecular acrchitecture. However, the absolute value of EM for an intramolecular phosphonate diester H-bond is about 4 times lower than the corresponding value for an intramolecular ether-phenol interaction embedded in the same supramolecular framework, which suggests that there may be some interplay of K and EM.     

Different supramolecular hydrogen bond structures and significant changes in magnetic properties in dinuclear mu 2-1,1-N3 copper(II) complexes with very similar tridentate Schiff base blocking ligands

Three new basal-apical, mu(2)-1,1-azide bridged complexes, [CuL(1)(N(3))](2) (1), [CuL(2)(N(3))](2) (2) and [CuL(3)(N(3))](2) (3) with very similar tridentate Schiff base blocking ligands [L(1) = N-(3-aminopropyl)salicylaldimine, L(2) = 7-amino-4-methyl-5-azahept-3-en-2-one and L(3) = 8-amino-4-methyl-5-azaoct-3-en-2-one) have been synthesised and their molecular structures determined by X-ray crystallography. In complex 1, there is no inter-dimer H-bonding. However, complexes 2 and 3 form two different supramolecular structures in which the dinuclear entities are linked by strong H-bonds giving one-dimensional systems. Variable-temperature (300-2 K) magnetic susceptibility measurements and magnetization measurements at 2 K reveal that complexes and have antiferromagnetic coupling while has ferromagnetic coupling which is also confirmed by EPR spectra at 4-300 K. Magnetostructural correlations have been made taking into consideration both the azido bridging ligands and the existence of intermolecular hydrogen bonds in complexes 2 and 3.     

Calculation of trans-hydrogen-bond 13C-15N three-bond and other scalar J-couplings in cooperative peptide models. A density functional theory study

We report B3LYP DFT calculations on peptide models that consider the effects of cooperative interactions with proximate H-bonds and local geometry at the H-bonding site upon trans-H-bond (13)C-(15)N three-bond scalar J-couplings. The calculations predict that cooperative interactions with other H-bonds within a H-bonding chain can significantly increase the magnitude of these couplings. Such increases are due to a combination of the presence of the neighboring H-bonds and the slight increase in C=O distances expected for peptide H-bonds near the centers of H-bonding chains. The energies of H-bonds inferred from H-bonding distances, alone, could be significantly in error if the effects of neighboring H-bonds are ignored.     

Self assembled tetranuclear Cu4(II), Ni4(II) [2 × 2] square grids and a dicopper(II) complex of heterocycle based polytopic ligands - Magnetic studies

The ditopic ligand PyPzOAP (N-[(Z)-amino(pyridin-2-yl)methylidene]-5-methyl-1-(pyridin-2-yl)-1H-pyrazole-3-carbohydrazonic acid) and the polytopic ligand 2-PzCAP (N'(3),N'(5)-bis[(1E)-1-(pyridin-2-yl)ethylidene]-1H-pyrazole-3,5-dicarbohydrazide) were synthesized in situ by condensation of methyl imino picolinate with 5-methyl-1-(2-pyridyl) pyrazole-3-carbohydrazide and 2-acetyl pyridine with pyrazole-3,5-dicarbohydrazide respectively. The ligands PyPzOAP and PzOAP (reported earlier, Dalton Trans., 2007, 1229) self-assemble to form homoleptic [2 × 2] tetranuclear M(4) (M = Cu(II) and Ni(II)) square grids structures [Cu(4)(PyPzOAP)(4)](NO(3))(4) (1), [Cu(4)(PzOAP)(4)](ClO(4))(4) (2) and [Ni(4)(PyPzOAP)(4)](NO(3))(4)·8H(2)O·2CH(3)CN (3). While the ligand 2-PzCAP forms a dicopper(II) complex [Cu(2)(2-PzCAP)(OH)(NO(3))(H(2)O)](NO(3))·2H(2)O (4). The complex 1 is a perfect square grid (a = 4.201 ?), whereas, 2 and 3 are almost square grids. All these compounds have been characterized by X-ray structural analyses and variable temperature magnetic susceptibility measurements. EPR studies have also been carried out for complexes 1, 2 and 4. In the Cu(4) grid (1), all the Cu(II) centers are in a distorted octahedral environment with N(4)O(2) chromophore, while, in complex 2, all four Cu(II) centers have a square pyramidal environment with N(3)O(2) chromophore. In complex 3, all four Ni(II) centers have distorted octahedral geometry with N(4)O(2) chromophore. In compound 4, the Cu(II) centers are in square pyramidal environment with N(3)O(2) chromophore. The magnetic properties of compounds 1 and 2 show the presence of intramolecular ferromagnetic exchange interaction (J = 5.88 cm(-1) for 1 and 4.78 cm(-1) for 2). The complex 3 shows weak intramolecular antiferromagnetic interaction (J = -4.02 cm(-1)). While, complex 4, shows strong antiferromagnetic behavior (J = -443 cm(-1)).     

Acetonitrile hydration and ethyl acetate hydrolysis by pyrazolate-bridged cobalt(II) dimers containing hydrogen-bond donors

The preparation of new CoII-mu-OH-CoII dimers with the binucleating ligands 3,5-bis{bis[(N'-R-ureaylato)-N-ethyl]aminomethyl}-1H-pyrazolate ([H4PRbuam]5-, R=tBu, iPr) is described. The molecular structure of the isopropyl derivative reveals that each CoII center has a trigonal-bipyramidial coordination geometry, with a Co...Co separation of 3.5857(5) A. Structural and spectroscopic studies show that there are four hydrogen-bond (H-bond) donors near the CoII-micro-OH-CoII moiety; however, they are too far away to be form intramolecular H-bonds with the bridging hydroxo ligand. Treating [CoII2H4PRbuam(micro-OH)]2- with acetonitrile led to the formation of bridging acetamidato complexes, [CoII2H4PRbuam(micro-1,3-OC(NH)CH3)]2-; in addition, these CoII-micro-OH-CoII dimers hydrolyze ethyl acetate to form CoII complexes with bridging acetato ligands. The CoII-1,3-micro-X'-CoII complexes (X'=OAc-, [OC(NH)CH3]-) were prepared independently by reacting [CoII2H3PRbuam]2- with acetamide or [CoII2H4PRbuam]- with acetate. X-ray diffraction studies show that the orientation of the acetate ligand within the H-bonding cavity depends on the size of the R substituent appended from the urea groups. The tetradentate ligand 3-{bis[(N'-tert-butylureaylato)-N-ethyl]aminomethyl}-5-tert-butyl-1H-pyrazolato ([H2PtBuuam]3-) was also developed and its CoII-OH complex prepared. In the crystalline state, [CoIIH2PtBuuam(OH)]2- contains two intramolecular H-bonds between the urea groups of [H2PtBuuam]3- and the terminal hydroxo ligand. [nPr4N]2[CoIIH2PtBuuam(OH)] does not hydrate acetonitrile or hydrolyze ethyl acetate. In contrast, K2[CoIIH2PtBuuam(OH)] does react with ethyl acetate to produce KOAc; this enhanced reactivity is attributed to the presence of the K+ ions, which can possibly interact with the CoII-OH unit and ester substrate to assist in hydrolysis. However, K2[CoIIH2PtBuuam(OH)] was still unable to hydrate acetonitrile.     

Cooperative 4-pyridone H-bonds with extraordinary stability. A DFT molecular orbital study

The N-H...O H-bonding enthalpy between 4-pyridones connected in a chain of H-bonds can achieve 23 kcal/mol for the most central H-bonds, while that between two 4-pyridones is 9.90 kcal/mol based upon DFT calculations on the counterpoise-corrected potential energy surfaces. That the range of enthalpies for N-H...O H-bonds can vary from as little as 2 to as much 23 kcal/mol depends primarily upon the polarizability of whatever internally connects the N-H and C=O within the H-bonding molecule, which are two parallel -C=C- entities in 4-pyridone. The contribution of covalent or charge-transfer interactions between the pi-systems of adjacent 4-pyridones is small.     

New route to the synthesis of bis[N-(2-aminoethyl) salicylaldiminato] chromium(III) chloride monohydrate Spectroscopic characterization, crystal structure and interaction with DNA

The reaction of [Cr(urea)(6)]Cl(3).3H(2)O with H(2)salen (H(2)salen=N,N(')-ethylenebis(salicylaldimine) in water-methanol mixture (40:60v/v) under reflux yielded the complex bis[N-(2-aminoethyl)salicylaldiminato]chromium(III) chloride monohydrate, [Cr(aesaldmn)(2)]Cl.H(2)O. The complex was characterized by elemental analysis, molar conductance, magnetic susceptibility, spectroscopic (UV-vis and IR) data and X-ray diffraction studies. The new ligand, N-(2-aminoethyl)salicylaldimine, Haesaldmn, possibly resulted from the hydrolytic cleavage of one end of the H(2)salen ligand during reflux. Binding of this chromium(III) complex to CT DNA has been studied using UV-vis spectroscopy with an apparent binding constant of 2.68 x 10(3)M(-1). It shows that the binding mode is electrostatic while the emission of ethidium bromide to CT DNA in the absence and in the presence of the complex show that it binds DNA with partial intercalation.     

Synthesis, structure, and physicochemical properties of dinuclear NiII complexes as highly efficient functional models of phosphohydrolases

As metal ions are present in the catalytic sites of several enzymes, attention has been focused on the synthesis and characterization of metal complexes able to act as biomimetic functional and structural models for these systems. In this study, a novel dinuclear NiII complex was synthesized, [Ni2(L2)(OAc)2(CH3CN)]BPh4 (2) (HL2=2-[N-(2-(pyridyl-2-yl)ethyl)(1-methylimidazol-2-yl)amin omethyl]-4-methyl-6-[N-(2-(imidazol-4-yl)ethyl)amino methyl]phenol), employing a new unsymmetrical dinucleating ligand containing N,O-donor groups as a model for hydrolases. Complex 2 was characterized by a variety of techniques including: elemental analysis, infrared and UV-vis spectroscopies, molar conductivity, electrochemistry, potentiometric titration, magnetochemistry, and single-crystal X-ray diffractometry. The structural and magnetochemical data of 2 allow us to consider this complex as a structural model for the active site of the ureases, as previously reported for [Ni2(L1)(OAc)2(H2O)]ClO4.H2O (1) (HL1=2-[N-bis-(2-pyridylmethyl)aminomethyl]-4-methyl-6-[N-(2-pyridylmethyl)aminomethyl] phenol). The characterization of complexes 1 and 2 (mainly by X-ray diffraction and potentiometric titration) led us to study their reactivities toward the hydrolysis of the substrate bis(2,4-dinitrophenyl)phosphate (2,4-BDNPP). These studies revealed that complexes 1 and 2 show the best catalytic activity reported so far, with acceleration rates 8.8x10(4) and 9.95x10(5) times faster, respectively, than the uncatalyzed hydrolysis of 2,4-BDNPP. Catalytic activity of 2 on 2,4-DNPP showed that the monoester is hydrolyzed 27 times slower than the 2,4-BDNPP diester under identical experimental conditions. Therefore, 1 and 2 can undoubtedly be considered highly efficient functional models of the phosphohydrolases.     

Nature of urea-fluoride interaction: incipient and definitive proton transfer

1,3-bis(4-nitrophenyl)urea (1) interacts through hydrogen bonding with a variety of oxoanions in an MeCN solution to give bright yellow 1:1 complexes, whose stability decreases with the decreasing basicity of the anion (CH3COO- > C6H5COO- > H2PO4- > NO2- > HSO4- > NO3-). The [Bu4N][1.CH3COO] complex salt has been isolated as a crystalline solid and its molecular structure determined, showing the formation of a discrete adduct held together by two N-H...O hydrogen bonds of moderate strength. On the other hand, the F- ion first establishes a hydrogen-bonding interaction with 1 to give the most stable 1:1 complex, and then on addition of a second equivalent, induces urea deprotonation, due to the formation of HF2-. The orange-red deprotonated urea solution uptakes carbon dioxide from air to give the tetrabutylammonium salt of the hydrogencarbonate H-bond complex, [Bu4N][1.HCO3], whose crystal and molecular structures have been determined.     

Synthesis,Crystal Structure and Biological Activity of N-（2,6-Difluorobenzoyl）-N＇-[5-（4-trifluoromethyl-phenyl）-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl]ure

The title compound N-(2,6-difluorobenzoyl)-N'-[5-(4-trifluoromethylphenyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl]urea(C17H9F5N4O2S,Mr = 428.34) has been synthesized by the reaction of 2-amino-5-(4-trifluoromethylphenyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazole with 2,6-difluorobenzoyl isocyanate,and its crystal structure was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction.The crystal belongs to monoclinic,space group P21/n with a = 10.7316(13),b = 10.5617(13),c = 16.037(2) ,β = 106.408(2)°,V = 1743.6(4) 3,Z = 4,Dc = 1.632 g/cm3,μ = 0.260 mm-1,F(000) = 864,the final R = 0.0599 and wR = 0.1420 for 3467 observed reflections with I > 2σ(I).The urea group,which adopts a planar configuration mediated by the intramolecular N-H...O hydrogen bond,is nearly coplanar with the thiadiazole and 4-trifluoromethylbenzene rings.The title compound was found to exhibit good fungicidal activity against Rhizoctonia solani and Botrytis cinerea.