Highly reactive electrophilic oxidants in cytochrome P450 catalysis

N-Sulfonyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline Derivatives: Synthesis, Antimicrobial Evaluations, and Theoretical Insights

Microbial contamination remains a significant economic challenge in the food industry, emphasizing the need for innovative antimicrobial solutions. In this study, we synthesized N-sulfonyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinolines (NSTHIQ) derivatives using an environmentally friendly Preyssler heteropolyacid catalyst, obtaining moderate to high yields (35-91 %) under mild conditions. Two derivatives (5 and 6) exhibited significant antifungal properties against various fungal species, including Aspergillus spp, Penicillium spp, and Botrytis cinerea. ADMET (Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, Excretion, and Toxicity) analysis revealed the absence of hepatic toxicity in all compounds, making derivatives 2, 3, 4, and 5 potential candidates for further development. However, derivatives 6 and 7 exhibited immunotoxicity. In support of our experimental findings, reactivity indices were computed using Density Functional Theory principles, deriving valuable insights into the chemical properties of these derivatives. This study underscores the potential of NSTHIQ compounds as potent antifungal agents, coupled with the importance of employing environmentally friendly catalysts in drug discovery.

Characterization of electrodes chemically modified with Mn(III) porphyrin/polypyrrole films as catalytic surfaces for an azo dye

In this study we describe the electrochemical behavior of 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(2'-aminophenylporphyrin)manganese(III) chloride supported on a glassy carbon electrode, as well as the electrochemical preparation and characterization of thin films based on pyrrole-3-carboxylic acid. The electrocatalytic action of the electrode modified with the Mn(III) porphyrin toward an azo dye was tested, and the characteristic strong interaction between the incorporated metalloporphyrin and RR120 dye was verified.

Active intermediates in heme monooxygenase reactions as revealed by cryoreduction/annealing, EPR/ENDOR studies

This review describes the use of cryoreduction/annealing EPR/ENDOR techniques for determining the active oxidizing species in reactions catalyzed by heme monooxygenases. The three candidate heme states are: ferric peroxo, ferric hydroperoxo and compound I intermediates. The enzymes discussed include cytochromes P450, nitric oxide synthase and heme oxygenase.

Quantitative production of compound I from a cytochrome P450 enzyme at low temperatures. Kinetics, activation parameters, and kinetic isotope effects for oxidation of benzyl alcohol

Cytochrome P450 enzymes are commonly thought to oxidize substrates via an iron(IV)-oxo porphyrin radical cation transient termed Compound I, but kinetic studies of P450 Compounds I are essentially nonexistent. We report production of Compound I from cytochrome P450 119 (CYP119) in high conversion from the corresponding Compound II species at low temperatures in buffer mixtures containing 50% glycerol by photolysis with 365 nm light from a pulsed lamp. Compound I was studied as a reagent in oxidations of benzyl alcohol and its benzylic mono- and dideuterio isotopomers. Pseudo-first-order rate constants obtained at -50 degrees C with concentrations of substrates between 1.0 and 6.0 mM displayed saturation kinetics that gave binding constants for the substrate in the Compound I species (K(bind)) and first-order rate constants for the oxidation reactions (k(ox)). Representative results are K(bind) = 214 M(-1) and k(ox) = 0.48 s(-1) for oxidation of benzyl alcohol. For the dideuterated substrate C(6)H(5)CD(2)OH, kinetics were studied between -50 and -25 degrees C, and a van't Hoff plot for complexation and an Arrhenius plot for the oxidation reaction were constructed. The H/D kinetic isotope effects (KIEs) at -50 degrees C were resolved into a large primary KIE (P = 11.9) and a small, inverse secondary KIE (S = 0.96). Comparison of values extrapolated to 22 degrees C of both the rate constant for oxidation of C(6)H(5)CD(2)OH and the KIE for the nondeuterated and dideuterated substrates to values obtained previously in laser flash photolysis experiments suggested that tunneling could be a significant component of the total rate constant at -50 degrees C.

Spectroscopic studies of the oxidation of ferric CYP153A6 by peracids: Insights into P450 higher oxidation states

Our previous rapid-scanning stopped-flow studies of the reaction of substrate-free cytochrome P450cam with peracids [T. Spolitak, J.H. Dawson, D.P. Ballou, J. Biol. Chem. 280 (2005) 20300-20309; J. Inorg. Biochem. 100 (2006) 2034-2044; J. Biol. Inorg. Chem. 13 (2008) 599-611] spectrally characterized compound I (ferryl iron plus a porphyrin pi-cation radical (Fe(IV)O/Por(.+))), Cpd ES, and Cpd II (Fe(IV)O/Tyr() or Fe(IV)O). We now report that reactions of CYP153A6 with peracids yield all these intermediates, with kinetic profiles allowing better resolution of all forms at pH 8.0 compared to similar reactions with WT P450cam. Properties of the reactions of these higher oxidation state intermediates were determined in double-mixing experiments in which intermediates are pre-formed and ascorbate is then added. Reactions of heptane-bound CYP153A6 (pH 7.4) with mCPBA resulted in conversion of P450 to the low-spin ferric form, presumably as heptanol was formed, suggesting that CYP 153A6 is a potential biocatalyst that can use peracids with no added NAD(P)H or reducing systems for bioremediation and other industrial applications.

Predicting activation enthalpies of cytochrome-P450-mediated hydrogen abstractions. 2. Comparison of semiempirical PM3, SAM1, and AM1 with a density functional theory method

Predicting the biotransformation of xenobiotics is important in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, as well as in toxicology. Here, we extend and evaluate the rapid methodology of Korzekwa, Jones, and Gillette (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1990, 112, 7042-7046 ) to estimate the activation enthalpy (DeltaH) of hydrogen-abstraction by cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes, using the p-nitrosophenoxy radical (PNPO) as a simple surrogate for the CYP active oxygen species. The DeltaH is estimated with a linear regression model using the reaction enthalpy and ionization energy (of the substrate radical) as predictor variables, calculated by semiempirical (SE) methods. While Korzekwa et al. used the SE method AM1, we applied PM3 and SAM1 and compared the results of the three methods. For 24 substrates, the AM1-, PM3-, and SAM1-derived regression models showed R(2) values of 0.89, 0.90, and 0.93, respectively, for the correlation between calculated and predicted DeltaH. Furthermore, we compared the DeltaH() calculated semiempirically using PNPO radical with density functional theory (DFT) B3LYP activation energies calculated by Olsen et al. (J. Med. Chem. 2006, 49, 6489-6499 ) using a more realistic iron-oxo-porphine model, and the results revealed limitations of the PNPO radical model. Thus, predictive models developed using SE predictors provide rapid and generally internally consistent results, but they should be interpreted and used cautiously.

Cooperative effects on radical recombination in CYP3A4-catalyzed oxidation of the radical clock beta-thujone

The timing of the beta-thujone radical clock (see scheme) can be specifically altered by an allosteric effector. Progesterone, a well-documented CYP3A4 allosteric effector, was found to increase the yield of the unrearranged, C4-derived product of beta-thujone oxidation at the expense of the combined yields of all the rearranged C4-oxidized metabolites. The results demonstrate that the apparent radical recombination rate in the CYP3A4 hydroxylation of beta-thujone is accelerated by the progesterone heterotropic cooperativity.

Kinetic isotope effects in hydroxylation reactions effected by cytochrome P450 compounds I implicate multiple electrophilic oxidants for P450-catalyzed oxidations

Kinetic isotope effects were measured for oxidations of (S,S)-2-(p-trifluoromethylphenyl)cyclopropylmethane containing zero, two, and three deuterium atoms on the methyl group by Compounds I from the cytochrome P450 enzymes CYP119 and CYP2B4 at 22 degrees C. The oxidations displayed saturation kinetics, which permitted solution of both binding constants (K(bind)) and first-order oxidation rate constants (k(ox)) for both enzymes with the three substrates. The binding constant for CYP2B4 Compound I was about 1 order of magnitude greater than that for CYP119 Compound I, but the oxidation rate constants were similar for the two. In oxidations of 1-d(0), k(ox) = 10.4 s(-1) for CYP119 Compound I, and k(ox) = 12.4 s(-1) for CYP2B4 Compound I. Primary kinetic isotope effects (P) and secondary kinetic isotope effects (S) were obtained from the results with the three isotopomers. The primary KIEs were large, P = 9.8 and P = 8.9 for CYP119 and CYP2B4 Compounds I, respectively, and the secondary KIEs were small and normal, S = 1.07 and S = 1.05, respectively. Large intermolecular KIEs for 1-d(0) and 1-d(3) of k(H)/k(D) = 11.2 and 9.8 found for the two Compounds I contrast with small intermolecular KIEs obtained previously for the same substrate in P450-catalyzed oxidations; these differences suggest that a second electrophilic oxidant, presumably iron-complexed hydrogen peroxide, is important in cytochrome P450 oxidations under turnover conditions.

Highly reactive porphyrin-iron-oxo derivatives produced by photolyses of metastable porphyrin-iron(IV) diperchlorates

Photolyses of metastable porphyrin-iron(IV) diperchlorates in laser flash photolysis reactions gave highly reactive transients. The systems studied were 5,10,15,20-tetraphenylporphyrin (TPP), 5,10,15,20-tetramesitylporphyrin (TMP), and 2,3,7,8,12,13,17,18-octaethylporphyrin (OEP). The new species, which decayed within milliseconds in acetonitrile solutions, were shown to react with organic substrates by oxo-transfer reactions involving insertions into carbon-carbon double bonds of alkenes and styrenes or benzylic carbon-hydrogen bonds of arenes. The order of reactivity was OEP > TPP > TMP. Second-order rate constants for reactions with several substrates at 22 degrees C were determined; representative values of rate constants for the TPP derivative were k = 8.6 x 10(5) M(-1) s(-1) for styrene, k = 2.5 x 10(6) M(-1) s(-1) for cyclohexene, and k = 7.7 x 10(4) M(-1) s(-1) for ethylbenzene. These porphyrin-iron-oxo transients reacted 4-5 orders of magnitude faster than the corresponding iron(IV)-oxo porphyrin radical cations with rate constants similar to those of porphyrin-manganese(V)-oxo derivatives. Rate constants for oxidations of benzylic C-H positions of arenes correlated with the C-H bond dissociation energies, and Hammett correlations for reactions with substituted styrenes had rho(+) values ranging from -0.5 to -0.7, reflecting electrophilic character of the oxidants and their high reactivity. On the basis of their unique UV-visible spectra, high reactivities, and oxo-transfer properties, the new transients are tentatively identified as porphyrin-iron(V)-oxo perchlorates, electronic isomers (or valence tautomers) of well-known iron(IV)-oxo porphyrin radical cations.

Density functional theory study of trans-dioxo complexes of iron, ruthenium, and osmium with saturated amine ligands, trans-[M(O)2(NH3)2(NMeH2)2]2+ (M=Fe, Ru, Os), and detection of [Fe(qpy)(O)2]n+ (n=1, 2) by high-resolution ESI mass spectrometry

Density functional theory (DFT) calculations on trans-dioxo metal complexes containing saturated amine ligands, trans-[M(O)2(NH3)2(NMeH2)2]2+ (M=Fe, Ru, Os), were performed with different types of density functionals (DFs): 1) pure generalized gradient approximations (pure GGAs): PW91, BP86, and OLYP; 2) meta-GGAs: VSXC and HCTH407; and 3) hybrid DFs: B3LYP and PBE1PBE. With pure GGAs and meta-GGAs, a singlet d2 ground state for trans-[Fe(O)2(NH3)2(NMeH2)2]2+ was obtained, but a quintet ground state was predicted by the hybrid DFs B3LYP and PBE1PBE. The lowest transition energies in water were calculated to be at lambda approximately 509 and 515 nm in the respective ground-state geometries from PW91 and B3LYP calculations. The nature of this transition is dependent on the DFs used: a ligand-to-metal charge-transfer (LMCT) transition with PW91, but a pi(Fe-O)-->pi*(Fe-O) transition with B3LYP, in which pi and pi* are the bonding and antibonding combinations between the dpi(Fe) and ppi(O(2-)) orbitals. The FeVI/V reduction potential of trans-[Fe(O)2(NH3)2NMeH2)2]2+ was estimated to be +1.30 V versus NHE based on PW91 results. The [Fe(qpy)(O)2](n+) (qpy=2,2':6',2'':6'',2''':6''',2''''-quinquepyridine; n=1 and 2) ions, tentatively assigned to dioxo iron(V) and dioxo iron(VI), respectively, were detected in the gas phase by high-resolution ESI-MS spectroscopy.

The carbon-skeleton rearrangement in tropane alkaloid biosynthesis

High-level quantum chemistry calculations have been performed to examine the carbon-skeleton rearrangement of the tropane alkaloid littorine to hyoscyamine. Two pathways involving radical and carbocation intermediates have been investigated in this regard, namely, stepwise (or fragmentation-recombination) and concerted. The fragmentation products are calculated to be of high energy for both the radical- and carbocation-based mechanisms (136.3 and 170.9 kJ mol(-1), respectively). Similarly, the rearrangement barrier for the radical-based concerted pathway is calculated to be quite high (135.6 kJ mol(-1)). In contrast, the carbocation-based concerted pathway is found to be associated with a relatively low barrier (47.4 kJ mol(-1)). The ionization energy of the substrate-derived radical 3a is calculated to be 7.01 eV, suggesting that its oxidation to generate the substrate-derived carbocation 3b ought to be facile. In an attempt to investigate how an enzyme might modulate the rearrangement barriers, the separate and combined influences of partially protonating the migrating group and partially deprotonating the spectator OH group of the substrate were investigated. Such interactions can lead to significant reductions in the rearrangement barrier for both the radical- and carbocation-based concerted pathways, although the carbocation pathway continues to have significantly lower energy requirements. Also, the relatively high (gas-phase) acidity of the OH group of the product-related carbocation 4b indicates that the direct formation of hyoscyamine aldehyde (6) is a highly exothermic process. Although we would not wish to rule out alternative possibilities, our calculations suggest that a concerted rearrangement mechanism involving carbocations constitutes a viable low-energy pathway for the carbon-skeleton rearrangement in tropane alkaloid biosynthesis.

Laser flash photolysis generation of high-valent transition metal-oxo species: insights from kinetic studies in real time

High-valenttransition metal-oxo species are active oxidizing species in many metal-catalyzed oxidation reactions in both Nature and the laboratory. In homogeneous catalytic oxidations, a transition metal catalyst is oxidized to a metal-oxo species by a sacrificial oxidant, and the activated transition metal-oxo intermediate oxidizes substrates. Mechanistic studies of these oxidizing species can provide insights for understanding commercially important catalytic oxidations and the oxidants in cytochrome P450 enzymes. In many cases, however, the transition metal oxidants are so reactive that they do not accumulate to detectable levels in mixing experiments, which have millisecond mixing times, and successful generation and direct spectroscopic characterization of these highly reactive transients remain a considerable challenge. Our strategy for understanding homogeneous catalysis intermediates employs photochemical generation of the transients with spectroscopic detection on time scales as short as nanoseconds and direct kinetic studies of their reactions with substrates by laser flash photolysis (LFP) methods. This Account describes studies of high-valent manganese- and iron-oxo intermediates. Irradiation of porphyrin-manganese(III) nitrates and chlorates or corrole-manganese(IV) chlorates resulted in homolytic cleavage of the O-X bonds in the ligands, whereas irradiation of porphyrin-manganese(III) perchlorates resulted in heterolytic cleavage of O-Cl bonds to give porphyrin-manganese(V)-oxo cations. Similar reactions of corrole- and porphyrin-iron(IV) complexes gave highly reactive transients that were tentatively identified as macrocyclic ligand-iron(V)-oxo species. Kinetic studies demonstrated high reactivity of the manganese(V)-oxo species, and even higher reactivities of the putative iron(V)-oxo transients. For example, second-order rate constants for oxidations of cis-cyclooctene at room temperature were 6 x 10(3) M(-1) s(-1) for a corrole-iron(V)-oxo species and 1.6 x 10(6) M(-1) s(-1) for the putative tetramesitylporphyrin-iron(V)-oxo perchlorate species. The latter rate constant is 25,000 times larger than that for oxidation of cis-cyclooctene by iron(IV)-oxo perchlorate tetramesitylporphyrin radical cation, which is the thermodynamically favored electronic isomer of the putative iron(V)-oxo species. The LFP-determined rate constants can be used to implicate the transient oxidants in catalytic reactions under turnover conditions where high-valent species are not observable. Similarly, the observed reactivities of the putative porphyrin-iron(V)-oxo species might explain the unusually high reactivity of oxidants produced in the cytochrome P450 enzymes, heme-thiolate enzymes that are capable of oxidizing unactivated carbon-hydrogen bonds in substrates so rapidly that iron-oxo intermediates have not been detected under physiological conditions.

X-ray absorption spectroscopic characterization of a cytochrome P450 compound II derivative

The cytochrome P450 enzyme CYP119, its compound II derivative, and its nitrosyl complex were studied by iron K-edge x-ray absorption spectroscopy. The compound II derivative was prepared by reaction of the resting enzyme with peroxynitrite and had a lifetime of approximately 10 s at 23 degrees C. The CYP119 nitrosyl complex was prepared by reaction of the enzyme with nitrogen monoxide gas or with a nitrosyl donor and was stable at 23 degrees C for hours. Samples of CYP119 and its derivatives were studied by x-ray absorption spectroscopy at temperatures below 140 (K) at the Advanced Photon Source of Argonne National Laboratory. The x-ray absorption near-edge structure spectra displayed shifts in edge and pre-edge energies consistent with increasing effective positive charge on iron in the series native CYP119 < CYP119 nitrosyl complex < CYP119 compound II derivative. Extended x-ray absorption fine structure spectra were simulated with good fits for k = 12 A(-1) for native CYP119 and k = 13 A(-1) for both the nitrosyl complex and the compound II derivative. The important structural features for the compound II derivative were an iron-oxygen bond length of 1.82 A and an iron-sulfur bond length of 2.24 A, both of which indicate an iron-oxygen single bond in a ferryl-hydroxide, Fe(IV)OH, moiety.

Low-Temperature Rapid-Scan Detection of Reactive Intermediates in Epoxidation Reactions Catalyzed by a New Enzyme Mimic of Cytochrome P450

The use of synthetic iron(III) porphyrins as models for heme-type catalysts in biomimetic cytochrome P450 research has provided valuable information on the nature and reactivity of intermediates produced in the "peroxide shunt" pathway. This article reports spectroscopic detection of reactive intermediates formed in the epoxidation reaction of cis-stilbene with m-chloroperoxybenzoic acid catalyzed by a new mimic of cytochrome P450 with a substituted RSO3- group (1). The application of low-temperature rapid-scan stopped-flow techniques enabled the determination of equilibrium and rate constants for the formation and decay of all intermediates in the catalytic cycle of 1, including the rate constant for the formation (1*+)FeIV=O and for oxygen transfer to the substrate. Noteworthy, the reaction of (1*+)FeIV=O with cis-stilbene leads to an almost complete re-formation (95%) of the starting complex 1. The results show that complex 1 is a valuable catalyst with promising properties for further applications in a biomimetic approach toward mimicking oxygenation reactions of cytochrome P450.

Proton assisted oxygen-oxygen bond splitting in cytochrome p450

Proton assisted O-O bond splitting of cytochromes' P450 hydroperoxo Compound 0 has been investigated by density functional theory, showing a barrier for the slightly endothermic formation of the iron-oxo Compound I. The barrier and the endothermicity increase with decreasing acidity of the distal proton source. Protonation of the proximal iron heme ligand favors the O-O bond scission and provides an important regulatory component in the catalytic cycle. The Compound 0 --> I conversion is slightly exothermic for the peroxidase and catalase models. Implications of the energetic relationship between the two reactive intermediates are discussed in terms of possible oxidative pathways.

Kinetics of two-electron oxidations by the compound I derivative of chloroperoxidase, a model for cytochrome P450 oxidants

[structure: see text] Rate constants for two-electron oxidation reactions of Compound I from chloroperoxidase (CPO) with a variety of substrates were measured by stopped-flow kinetic techniques. The thiolate ligand of CPO Compound I activates the iron-oxo species with the result that oxidation reactions are 2 to 3 orders of magnitude faster than oxidations by model iron(IV)-oxo porphyrin radical cations containing weaker binding counterions.

Proton-Directed Redox Control of O−O Bond Activation by Heme Hydroperoxidase Models

Hangman metalloporphyrin complexes poise an acid-base group over a redox-active metal center and in doing so allow the "pull" effect of the secondary coordination environment of the heme cofactor of hydroperoxidase enzymes to be modeled. Stopped-flow investigations have been performed to decipher the influence of a proton-donor group on O-O bond activation. Low-temperature reactions of tetramesitylporphyrin (TMP) and Hangman iron complexes containing acid (HPX-CO2H) and methyl ester (HPX-CO2Me) functional groups with peroxyacids generate high-valent Fe=O active sites. Reactions of peroxyacids with (TMP)FeIII(OH) and methyl ester Hangman (HPX-CO2Me)FeIII(OH) give both O-O heterolysis and homolysis products, Compound I (Cpd I) and Compound II (Cpd II), respectively. However, only the former is observed when the hanging group is the acid, (HPX-CO2H)FeIII(OH), because odd-electron homolytic O-O bond cleavage is inhibited. This proton-controlled, 2e- (heterolysis) vs 1e- (homolysis) redox specificity sheds light on the exceptional catalytic performance of the Hangman metalloporphyrin complexes and provides tangible benchmarks for using proton-coupled multielectron reactions to catalyze O-O bond-breaking and bond-making reactions.

Photochemical production of a highly reactive porphyrin-iron-oxo species

Oxidation of 5,10,15,20-tetramesitylporphyrinatoiron(III) perchlorate, (TMP)FeIII(ClO4), with ferric perchlorate in acetonitrile gave a metastable species identified as (TMP)FeIV(ClO4)2 that decayed within seconds to the known isomeric species (TMP*+)FeIII(ClO4)2. Irradiation of the metastable species with 355 nm laser light gave a highly reactive transient that reacts with simple organic reductants (alkenes and arylalkanes) 5 orders of magnitude faster than known Compound I analogues, (TMP*+)FeIV(O)(X-).

Nitric-oxide synthase: A cytochrome P450 family foster child

Nitric-oxide synthase (NOS), the enzyme responsible for mammalian NO generation, is no cytochrome P450, but there are striking similarities between both enzymes. First and foremost, both are heme-thiolate proteins, employing the same prosthetic group to perform similar chemistry. Moreover, they share the same redox partner, a diflavoprotein reductase, which in the case of NOS is incorporated with the oxygenase in one polypeptide chain. There are, however, also conspicuous differences, such as the presence in NOS of the additional cofactor tetrahydrobiopterin, which is applied as an auxiliary electron donor to prevent decay of the oxyferrous complex to ferric heme and superoxide. In this review similarities and differences between NOS and cytochrome P450 are analyzed in an attempt to explain why NOS requires BH4 and why NO synthesis is not catalyzed by a member of the cytochrome P450 family.

Exotic biomodification of fatty acids

Many biotransformations of mid- to long chain fatty acyl derivatives are intrinsically interesting because of their high selectivity and novel mechanisms. These include one carbon transfer, hydration, isomerization, hydrogenation, ladderane and hydrocarbon formation, thiolation and various oxidative transformations such as epoxidation, hydroxylation and desaturation. In addition, hydroperoxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids leads to a diverse array of bioactive compounds. The bioorganic aspects of selected reactions will be highlighted in this review; 210 references are cited.

Cytochrome p450 compound I

Cytochrome P450 enzymes (P450s) comprise a large class of enzymes that effect numerous oxidations in nature. The active oxidants in P450s are thought to be iron(IV)-oxo porphyrin radical cations termed Compounds I, and these intermediates have been sought since the discovery of P450s 40 years ago. We report formation of the Compound I derivative of a P450 enzyme by laser flash photolysis oxidation of the corresponding Compound II species, an iron(IV)-oxo neutral porphyrin intermediate. The Compound II derivative in turn was produced by oxidation of the P450 with peroxynitrite, which effected a net one-electron, oxo-transfer reaction to the iron(III) atom of the resting enzyme. For the P450 studied in this work, CYP119 from the thermophile Sulfolobus solfactaricus, the P450 Compound II derivative was stable for seconds at ambient temperature, and the Compound I transient decayed with a lifetime of ca. 200 ms.