Synergy Effects in Heavy Metal Ion Chelation with Aryl- and Aroyl-Substituted Thiourea Derivatives

Detection and removal of metal ion contaminants have attracted great interest due to the health risks that they represent for humans and wildlife. Among the proposed compounds developed for these purposes, thiourea derivatives have been shown as quite efficient chelating agents of metal cations and have been proposed for heavy metal ion removal and for components of high-selectivity sensors. Understanding the nature of metal-ionophore activity for these compounds is thus of high relevance. We present a theoretical study on the interaction between substituted thioureas and metal cations, namely, Cd²⁺, Hg²⁺, and Pb²⁺. Two substituent groups have been chosen: 2-furoyl and m-trifluoromethylphenyl. Combining density functional theory simulations with wave function analysis techniques, we study the nature of the metal-thiourea interaction and characterize the bonding properties. Here, it is shown how the N,N'-disubstituted derivative has a strong affinity for Hg²⁺, through cation-hydrogen interactions, due to its greater oxidizing capacity.

Combined Experimental and Theoretical Survey of the Gas-Phase Reactions of Serine-Ca2+ Adducts

The association of Ca²⁺ to serine and the subsequent gas-phase unimolecular reactivity of the [Ca(Ser)]²⁺ (Ser = Serine) adduct was investigated throughout the use of tandem mass spectrometry techniques and B3LYP/6-311+G(3df,2p)//B3LYP/6-311+G(d,p) density functional theory calculations. In a first step, the structure and relative stability of all possible conformers of serine were obtained and analyzed, as well as the most stable [serine-Ca]²⁺ adducts. For the analysis of the different potential energy surfaces associated with the gas-phase unimolecular reactivity of these adducts, only those that differ by less than 100 kJ·mol^-1 from the global minimum were taken into account. In agreement with previous studies, the serine-Ca²⁺ global minimum corresponds to a charge-solvated structure in which Ca is tricoordinated to neutral serine. The major peaks observed in the nanoelectrospray-MS/MS spectrum of [Ca(Ser)]²⁺ adduct correspond to both Coulomb explosions, yielding either CaOH⁺ + [C₃,H₆,N,O₂]⁺ or [C₂,H₄,O,N]⁺ + [Ca(C,H₃,O₂)]⁺, and to the loss of neutrals, namely, CH₂O and H₂O. Our theoretical survey of the energy profile allow us to conclude that, although all the aforementioned fragmentation processes can have their origin at the global minimum, similar fragmentations involving low-lying conformers, both zwitterionic and nonzwitterionic, compete and should be considered to account for the observed reactivity. We have also found that in some specific cases post-transition state dynamics similar to the ones described before in the literature for formamide-Ca²⁺ reactions, may also play a role.

Possible use of BN-modified fullerene as a nano-biosensor to detect adenine–thymine Watson–Crick base pair in mutagenic tautomeric form: Theoretical approach

The present work deals with the theoretical investigation of electronic structure features and stability of adenine–thymine (AT) and rare tautomer of adenine–thymine (rAT) base pairs along with their complexes with Cu 2+ cation and their interactions with BN doped fullerene ( C 58 BN ). All the calculations have been performed with density functional theory using B3LYP functional. Electronic structures of the two base pairs are almost identical. Hence, it is rather difficult to distinguish between the two base pairs on the basis of their electronic properties. As per our theoretical calculations, we have observed that, BN modified fullerene could act as a nano-biosensor for detection of mispairing between these two complementary bases as well as their Cu 2+ complexes.

Quantum chemical investigations of AlN-doped C60 for use as a nano-biosensor in detection of mispairing between DNA bases

Quantum chemical calculations were carried out to study the electronic structure and stability of adenine-thymine and the rare tautomer of adenine-thymine base pairs along with their Cu 2+ complexes and their interactions with AlN-modified fullerene (C58AlN) using Density Functional Theory (B3LYP method). Since, these two forms of base pairs and their Cu 2+ complexes have almost similar electronic structures, their chemical differentiation is an extremely difficult task. In this investigation, we have observed that AlN-doped C 60 could be used as a potentially viable nanoscale sensor to detect these two base pairs as well as their Cu2+ complexes.

Morphology-dependent performance of CuO anodes via facile and controllable synthesis for lithium-ion batteries

Nanostructured CuO anode materials with controllable morphologies have been successfully synthesized via a facile and environmentally friendly approach in the absence of any toxic surfactants or templates. In particular, leaf-like CuO, oatmeal-like CuO, and hollow-spherical CuO were obtained by changing the ligand agents. The structures and electrochemical performance of these as-prepared CuO were fully characterized by various techniques, and the properties were found to be strongly dependent on morphology. As anode materials for lithium-ion batteries, the leaf-like CuO and oatmeal-like CuO electrodes exhibit relatively high reversible capacities, whereas hollow-spherical CuO shows enhanced reversible capacity after initial degradation. Furthermore, an excellent high rate capability was obtained for the leaf-like CuO and hollow-spherical CuO electrodes. These results may provide valuable insights for the development of nanostructured anodes for next-generation high-performance lithium-ion batteries.

Unimolecular reactivity of the [urea-Sr]2+ complex, a metastable dication in the gas phase: an experimental and theoretical perspective

The interactions between urea and Sr(2+) in the gas phase have been investigated by combining electrospray ionization/mass spectrometry techniques and density functional and high-level ab initio molecular orbital calculations. Our theoretical survey indicates that [Sr(urea)](2+) adducts are thermodynamically stable with respect to direct Coulomb explosions. However, after isomerization, some of the local minima of the PES are thermodynamically unstable with respect to the formation of NH(4)(+), but kinetically metastable. The loss of neutral fragments with the concomitant generation of lighter doubly charged fragment ions, namely, [(H(3)N)Sr](2+) and [(HNCO)]Sr(2+), compete with the aforementioned Coulomb explosion processes yielding NH(4)(+) + [(NCO)Sr](+) and [(H(2)N)Sr](+) + [H(2)NCO](+), although the former processes dominate. Hence, both singly and doubly charged species are detected as dissociation products. Quite importantly, the observed eliminations of NH(3) or HNCO lead to the formation of new doubly charged species, which turn out to be thermodynamically stable.

Gas-phase reactivity of protonated 2-oxazoline derivatives: mass spectrometry and computational studies

RATIONALE

Oxazolines have attracted the attention of researchers worldwide due to their versatility as carboxylic acid protecting groups, chiral auxiliaries, and ligands for asymmetric catalysis. Electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometric (ESI-MS/MS) analysis of five 2-oxazoline derivatives has been conducted, in order to understand the influence of the side chain on the gas-phase dissociation of these protonated compounds under collision-induced dissociation (CID) conditions.

METHODS

Mass spectrometric analyses were conducted in a quadrupole time-of-flight (Q-TOF) spectrometer fitted with electrospray ionization source. Protonation sites have been proposed on the basis of the gas-phase basicity, proton affinity, atomic charges, and a molecular electrostatic potential map obtained on the basis of the quantum chemistry calculations at the B3LYP/6-31 + G(d,p) and G2(MP2) levels.

RESULTS

Analysis of the atomic charges, gas-phase basicity and proton affinities values indicates that the nitrogen atom is a possible proton acceptor site. On the basis of these results, two main fragmentation processes have been suggested: one taking place via neutral elimination of the oxazoline moiety (99 u) and another occurring by sequential elimination of neutral fragments with 72 u and 27 u. These processes should lead to formation of R(+).

CONCLUSIONS

The ESI-MS/MS experiments have shown that the side chain could affect the dissociation mechanism of protonated 2-oxazoline derivatives. For the compound that exhibits a hydroxyl at the lateral chain, water loss has been suggested to happen through an E2-type elimination, in an exothermic step.

A quantum-chemical study of the binding ability of βXaaHisGlyHis towards copper(II) ion

The present study analyzed binding of Cu²⁺ to tetrapeptides in water solution at several levels of theoretical approximation. The methods used to study the energetic and structural properties of the complexes in question include semiempirical hamiltonians, density functional theory as well as ab initio approaches including electron correlation effects. In order to shed light on the character of interactions between Cu²⁺ and peptides, which are expected to be mainly electrostatic in nature, decomposition of interaction energy into physically meaningful components was applied.

Modeling the interactions between peptide functions and Sr2+: formamide-Sr2+ reactions in the gas phase

The interactions between formamide, which can be considered a prototype of a peptide function, and Sr(2+) have been investigated by combining nanoelectrospray ionization/mass spectrometry techniques and G96LYP DFT calculations. For Sr an extended LANL2DZ basis set was employed, together with a 6-311+G(3df,2p) basis set expansion for the remaining atoms of the system. The observed reactivity seems to be dominated by the Coulomb explosion process yielding [SrOH](+) + [HNCH](+), which are the most intense peaks in the MS/MS spectra. Nevertheless, additional peaks corresponding to the loss of HNC and CO indicate that the association of Sr(2+) to water or to ammonia leads to long-lived doubly charged species detectable in the timescale of these experimental techniques. The topology of the calculated potential energy surface permits us to establish the mechanisms behind these processes. Although the interaction between the neutral base and Sr(2+) is essentially electrostatic, the polarization triggered by the doubly charged metal ion results in the activation of several bonds, and favors different proton transfer mechanisms required for the formation of the [SrOH](+), [SrOH(2)](2+) and [SrNH(3)](2+) products.

Serine–Ca2+ versus serine–Cu2+ complexes — A theoretical perspective

The association of Ca2+ and Cu2+ to serine was investigated by means of B3LYP DFT calculations. The [serine–M]2+ (M = Ca, Cu) potential energy surfaces include, as does the neutral serine, a large number of conformers, in which a drastic reorganization of the electron density of the serine moiety is observed. This leads to significant changes in the number and strength of the intramolecular hydrogen bonds existing in the neutral serine tautomers. In some cases, a proton is transferred from the carboxylic OH group to the amino group and accordingly, some of the more stable [serine–M]2+ complexes can be viewed as the result of the interaction of the zwiterionic form of serine with the doubly charged metal ion. Whereas the interaction between Ca2+ and serine is essentially electrostatic, that between Cu2+ and serine has a non-negligible covalent character, reflected in larger electron densities at the bond critical points between the metal and the base, in the negative values of the electron density between the two interacting systems, and in much larger Cu2+ than Ca2+ binding energies. More importantly, the interaction with Cu2+ is followed by a partial oxidation of the base, which is not observed when the metal ion is Ca2+. The main consequence is that in Cu2+ complexes a significant acidity enhancement of the serine moiety takes place, which strongly favors the deprotonation of the [serine–Cu]2+ complexes. This is not the case for Ca2+ complexes. Thus, [serine–Ca]2+ complexes, like those formed by urea, thiourea, selenourea, or glycine, should be detected in the gas phase. Conversely, the complexes with Cu2+ should deprotonate spontaneously and therefore only [(serine–H)–Cu]+ monocations should be experimentally accessible.