A mono-diazenide complex from perrhenate: toward a new core for rhenium radiopharmaceuticals

A new method for the synthesis of low to intermediate oxidation state rhenium complexes containing a bifunctional ligand has been developed. Reaction of ReO(4)](-) with substituted phenylhydrazines and triphenylphosphine in acetonitrile in the presence of HCl allows the isolation of ReCl(2)(NNC(6)H(4)-4-R)(NCCH(3))(PPh(3))(2)] (where R = OCH(3), Cl, or CO(2)CH(3)). The substituted hydrazine acts as both a reductant and source of a monodentate diazenide ligand. The compounds have all been characterized in the solid state by X-ray crystallography and in the solution state by NMR, electrospray mass spectrometry, and HPLC. Cyclic voltammetry measurements show that the mono-diazenide complexes undergo a reversible oxidation.