53 research outputs found

    Potentiometric acidity determination in humic substances influenced by different analytical procedures

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    Carboxylic (CA), phenolic (PhA) and total (TA) acidity contents of five International Humic Substances Society (IHSS) standards and four model compounds were determined via the potentiometric titration method. Titration curves were scrutinized both by the BEST7 algorithm and the modified Henderson-Hasselbalch model (MHHM). In the case of IHSS samples, the fitting data depended on the analytical procedure undertaken. Whilst high CA and low PhA were usually recorded using the MHHM, the opposite trend was observed employing the BEST7 algorithm. In contrast, in the case of model compounds the acidity values matched well with theoretical data regardless of the procedure. In order to better understand the reasons for such discrepancies changes in the titrations procedure (e.g.: fast or slow) were also considered. General data strongly suggest that acidity determination of humic substances (HS) by potentiometric methods is extremely dependent on both the choice of mathematical model to fit experimental data points as well as the experimental conditions employed

    Equilibrium studies of ternary complexes formed by bromide, sulfate, selenite and selenate ions with Zn2+, Mg2+ and 1, 4, 7, 13, 16, 19-hexaaza- 10, 22- dioxacyclotetracosane (obisdien)

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    Bromide, sulfate, selenite and selenate were found to form bridges in the cavity of mononuclear and binuclear Obisdien:Zn(II) and Obisdien:Mg(II) complexes in aqueous solution at 25.0 °C and m = 0.100 M (KCl). Potentiometric equilibrium measurements were used to determine the formation constants of the species formed in these systems in the pH range 2-12. For the Obisdien: Zn2+:anions complexes, we have established the existence of four species for bromide ion, five species for sulfate ion, six species for selenite ion and four species for selenate ion. We found that the hydroxo binuclear complexes predominate over the others species, and the binding strength decreases in the sequence: SeO4(2-) > SeO3(2-) > SO4(2-) > Br-. The Obisdien:Mg(II) system presents three species in case of binding with bromide ion, four with sulfate ion, five with selenite ion and five with selenate ion. Variation of the binding strength in the Obisdien:Mg(II) complexes is the same as in the Obisdien:Zn(II) complexes: SeO4(2-) > SeO3(2-) > SO4(2-) > Br-. Molecular mechanics calculations show that the dizinc(II)- and dimagnesium(II)-Obisdien complexes adopt several low energy conformations differing in their Zn to Zn and Mg to Mg separations that allow the coordination of SeO4(2-), SeO3(2-), SO4(2-), Br- and OH- anions

    Probing the role of the divalent metal ion in uteroferrin using metal ion replacement and a comparison to isostructural biomimetics

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    Purple acid phosphatases (PAPs) are a group of heterovalent binuclear metalloenzymes that catalyze the hydrolysis of phosphomonoesters at acidic to neutral pH. While the metal ions are essential for catalysis, their precise roles are not fully understood. Here, the Fe(III)Ni(II) derivative of pig PAP (uteroferrin) was generated and its properties were compared with those of the native Fe(III)Fe(II) enzyme. The kcat of the Fe(III)Ni(II) derivative (approximately 60 s–1) is approximately 20% of that of native uteroferrin, and the Ni(II) uptake is considerably faster than the reconstitution of full enzymatic activity, suggesting a slow conformational change is required to attain optimal reactivity. An analysis of the pH dependence of the catalytic properties of Fe(III)Ni(II) uteroferrin indicates that the l-hydroxide is the likely nucleophile. Thus, the Ni(II) derivative employs a mechanism similar to that proposed for the Ga(III)Zn(II) derivative of uteroferrin, but different from that of the native enzyme, which uses a terminal Fe(III)-bound nucleophile to initiate catalysis. Binuclear Fe(III)Ni(II) biomimetics with coordination environments similar to the coordination environment of uteroferrin were generated to provide both experimental benchmarks (structural and spectroscopic) and further insight into the catalytic mechanism of hydrolysis. The data are consistent with a reaction mechanism employing an Fe(III)-bound terminal hydroxide as a nucleophile, similar to that proposed for native uteroferrin and various related isostructural biomimetics. Thus, only in the uteroferrin- catalyzed reaction are the precise details of the catalytic mechanism sensitive to the metal ion composition, illustrating the significance of the dynamic ligand environment in the protein active site for the optimization of the catalytic efficiency

    Induction of apoptosis in leukemia cell lines by new copper(II) complexes containing naphthyl groups via interaction with death receptors

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    The synthesis, physico-chemical characterization and cytotoxicity of four new ligands and their respective copper(II) complexes toward two human leukemia cell lines (THP-1 and U937) are reported (i.e. [(HL1) Cu(mu-Cl)(2)Cu(HL1)]Cl-2 center dot H2O (1), [(H2L2)Cu(mu-Cl)(2)Cu(H2L2)]Cl-2 center dot 5H(2)O (2), [(HL3)Cu(mu-Cl)(2)Cu(HL3)]Cl-2 center dot 4H(2) (3), [(H2L4)Cu(mu-Cl)(2)Cu(H2L4)]Cl-2 center dot 6H(2)O (4)). Ligands HL1 and HL3 contain two pyridines, amine and alcohol moieties with a naphthyl pendant unit yielding a N3O coordination metal environment Ligands H2L2 and H2L4 have pyridine, phenol, amine and alcohol groups with a naphthyl pendant unit providing a N2O2 coordination metal environment These compounds are likely to be dinuclear in the solid state but form mononuclear species in solution. The complexes have an antiproliferative effect against both leukemia cell lines; complex (2) exhibits higher activity than cisplatin against U937 (8.20 vs 16.25 mu mol dm(-3)) and a comparable one against THP-1. These human neoplastic cells are also more susceptible than peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) toward the tested compounds. Using C57BL/6 mice an LD50 of 55 mg kg(-1) was determined for complex (2), suggesting that this compound is almost four times less toxic than cisplatin (LD50 = 14.5 mg kg(-1)). The mechanism of cell death promoted by ligand H2L2 and by complexes (2) and (4) was investigated by a range of techniques demonstrating that the apoptosis signal triggered at least by complex (2) starts from an extrinsic pathway involving the activation of caspases 4 and 8. This signal is amplified by mitochondria with the concomitant release of cytochrome c and the activation of caspase 9. (C) 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

    A New Heterobinuclear FeIIICuII Complex with a Single Terminal FeIII–O(phenolate) Bond. Relevance to Purple Acid Phosphatases and Nucleases

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    A novel heterobinuclear mixed valence complex [Fe^IIICu^II(BPBPMP)(OAc)_2]ClO_4, 1, with the unsymmetrical N_5O_2 donor ligand 2-bis[{(2-pyridylmethyl)aminomethyl}-6-{(2-hydroxybenzyl)(2-pyridylmethyl)} aminomethyl]-4-methylphenol (H_2BPBPMP) has been synthesized and characterized. A combination of data from mass spectrometry, potentiometric titrations, X-ray absorption and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy, as well as kinetics measurements indicates that in ethanol/water solutions an [Fe^III-(nu)OH-Cu^IIOH_2]+ species is generated which is the likely catalyst for 2,4-bis(dinitrophenyl)phosphate and DNA hydrolysis. Insofar as the data are consistent with the presence of an Fe_III-bound hydroxide acting as a nucleophile during catalysis, 1 presents a suitable mimic for the hydrolytic enzyme purple acid phosphatase. Notably, 1 is significantly more reactive than its isostructural homologues with different metal composition (Fe^IIIM^II, where M^II is Zn^II, Mn^II, Ni^II,or Fe^II). Of particular interest is the observation that cleavage of double-stranded plasmid DNA occurs even at very low concentrations of 1 (2.5 nuM), under physiological conditions (optimum pH of 7.0), with a rate enhancement of 2.7 x 10^7 over the uncatalyzed reaction. Thus, 1 is one of the most effective model complexes to date, mimicking the function of nucleases
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