Jarosław J. Panek

Artificial Metalloenzyme for Enantioselective Sulfoxidation Based on Vanadyl-Loaded Streptavidin

Natures catalysts are specifically evolved to carry out efficient and selective reactions. Recent developments in biotechnology have allowed the rapid optimization of existing enzymes for enantioselective processes. However, the ex nihilo creation of catalytic activity from a noncatalytic protein scaffold remains very challenging. Herein, we describe the creation of an artificial enzyme upon incorporation of a vanadyl ion into the biotin-binding pocket of streptavidin, a protein devoid of catalytic activity. The resulting artificial metalloenzyme catalyzes the enantioselective oxidation of prochiral sulfides with good enantioselectivities both for dialkyl and alkyl-aryl substrates (up to 93% enantiomeric excess). Electron paragmagnetic resonance spectroscopy, chemical modification, and mutagenesis studies suggest that the vanadyl ion is located within the biotin-binding pocket and interacts only via second coordination sphere contacts with streptavidin.

Proton Dynamics in the Strong Chelate Hydrogen Bond of Crystalline Picolinic Acid N-Oxide. A New Computational Approach and Infrared, Raman and INS Study

Infrared, Raman and INS spectra of picolinic acid N-oxide (PANO) were recorded and examined for the location of the hydronic modes, particularly O-H stretching and COH bending. PANO is representative of strong chelate hydrogen bonds (H-bonds) with its short O...O distance (2.425 A). H-bonding is possibly well-characterized by diffraction, NMR and NQR data and calculated potential energy functions. The analysis of the spectra is assisted by DFT frequency calculations both in the gas phase and in the solid state. The Car-Parrinello quantum mechanical solid-state method is also used for the proton dynamics simulation; it shows the hydron to be located about 99% of time in the energy minimum near the carboxylic oxygen; jumps to the N-O acceptor are rare. The infrared spectrum excels by an extended absorption (Zundels continuum) interrupted by numerous Evans transmissions. The model proton potential functions on which the theories of continuum formation are based do not correspond to the experimental and computed characteristics of the hydrogen bond in PANO, therefore a novel approach has been developed; it is based on crystal dynamics driven hydronium potential fluctuation. The envelope of one hundred 0 --> 1 OH stretching transitions generated by molecular dynamics simulation exhibits a maximum at 1400 cm-1 and a minor hump at approximately 1600 cm-1. These positions square well with ones predicted for the COH bending and OH stretching frequencies derived from various one- and two-dimensional model potentials. The coincidences with experimental features have to be considered with caution because the CPMD transition envelope is based solely on the OH stretching coordinate while the observed infrared bands correspond to heavily mixed modes as was previously shown by the normal coordinate analysis of the IR spectrum of argon matrix isolated PANO, the present CPMD frequency calculation and the empirical analysis of spectra. The experimental infrared spectra show some unusual characteristics such as large temperature effects on the intensity of some bands, thus presenting a challenge for theoretical band shape treatments. Our calculations clearly show that the present system is characterized by an asymmetric single well potential with no large amplitudes in the hydronium motion, which extends the existence of Zundel-type spectra beyond the established set of hydrogen bonds with large hydronic vibrational amplitudes.

Car-Parrinello simulation of an O–H stretching envelope and potential of mean force of an intramolecular hydrogen bonded system: Application to a Mannich base in solid state and in vacuum

Car-Parrinello molecular dynamics (CPMD) study was performed for an anharmonic system-an intramolecularly hydrogen bonded Mannich-base-type compound, 4,5-dimethyl-2(N,N-dimethylaminemethyl)phenol, to investigate the vibrational spectrum associated with the O-H stretching. Calculations were carried out for the solid state and for an isolated molecule. The classical CPMD simulation was performed and then the proton potential snapshots were extracted from the trajectory. The vibrational Schrodinger equation for the snapshots was solved numerically, and the (O-H) envelope was calculated as a superposition of the 0-->1 transitions. The potential of mean force for the proton stretching mode was calculated from the proton vibrational eigenfunctions and eigenvalues incorporating statistical sampling, nuclear quantum effects, and effects of the environment. Perspectives for application of the presented methodology in the computational support of biocatalysis are given in the study.

Molecular property investigations of an ortho-hydroxy Schiff base type compound with the first-principle molecular dynamics approach.

The structure, proton transfer, and vibrational dynamics under ambient conditions of a selected ortho-hydroxy Schiff base type compound, 2-(N-methyl-alpha-iminoethyl)-4-chlorophenol, containing a very short intramolecular hydrogen bond, were investigated computationally in the gas phase and in the crystal by density functional theory (DFT) based first-principle molecular dynamics (FPMD). It is found that the proton is well localized on the nitrogen side of the O...H...N bridge in the crystal phase, in agreement with X-ray diffraction experiments, while a more labile proton is located most of the time on the oxygen side in a vacuum. Environmental effects on this very strong hydrogen bond thus appear crucial and lead to drastic changes of the infrared (IR) spectrum: The computed gas-phase IR spectrum shows a very broad absorption band that covers frequencies from about 1000 to 3000 cm(-1) assigned to the labile proton. In mere contrast, a much more localized absorption band around 2600-2700 cm(-1) is predicted in the crystal phase. Finally, effects of the quantization of the proton motion on the hydrogen bond structure were estimated in two ways. First, we constructed the one-dimensional (1D) potential energy surface (PES) for the proton along the O...H...N bridge in a vacuum. The 1D Schrodinger equation was then solved. Next, path integral molecular dynamics (PIMD) was performed in the solid state. Inclusion of quantum effects does not affect the observed change of the most probable tautomer, upon going from the gas phase to the crystal.

H-Bonded Complexes of Aniline with HF/F− and Anilide with HF in Terms of Symmetry-Adapted Perturbation, Atoms in Molecules, and Natural Bond Orbitals Theories

The hydrogen-bonded isoelectronic complexes of aniline with HF/F- and an ionic form of aniline with HF were investigated by use of computational methods: Symmetry-Adapted Perturbation Theory (SAPT), Atoms in Molecules (AIM), and Natural Bond Orbitals (NBO) approaches. All computations were based on structural models previously generated at the B3LYP/6-311+(d,p) level. The differences between neutral (Ph-NH2...HF)and anionic (Ph-NH2...F- and Ph-NH-...HF) complexes were clearly outlined. The discussed charged complexes serve as Lewis acids and base, HF and F-, respectively. It was found that electrostatic and induction energy terms, obtained as a result of the SAPT method, are most dependent on the type of H-bonding (i.e.,charged or neutral). The electrostatic term is the most distinctive between the neutral and charge-assisted hydrogen bonds in the investigated two-body systems, whereas the latter is more significant in the case of weaker interactions (larger H...B distances). Application of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to energy components obtained from the SAPT procedure indicated that all of them are relatively well intercorrelated.The above-mentioned terms together with the exchange energy terms are the most important contributions ofthe main principal component, which describes 95% of the total variance. Comparison of AIM parameters in bond critical points for modeled H-bond systems shows a good agreement with those from equilibrium complexes, both experimental and calculated ones. It was found that charged H-bonded complexes exhibit larger fluctuation of electron density and its Laplacian in bond critical points, in line with SAPT analysis. NBO results confirmed the effect of the strength of interaction on property changes both in the region of H-bonding and outside of it. The latter, more distant consequences follow the Bent-Walsh rule for all studied complexes.

Quantum chemical calculations on FXeSiF

Abstract Quantum chemical calculations on FXeSiF are reported. The equilibrium structure, energetics, harmonic and anharmonic vibrational frequencies, and an analysis of the nature of bonding, is presented. All calculations are made at the MP2 level, while energetics is also considered via single-point CCSD(T) calculations. Energetical considerations of FXeSiF suggest that it should be stable compared to its decomposition pathways either via its bending coordinate to Xe+SiF 2 or via the stretching coordinate to F+Xe+SiF. Analysis of electron localization function (ELF) indicates that both fluorines are bound by interactions of unshared-electron type, i.e. by ionic interactions. The Xe–Si bond, however, is shown to be covalent, and this is the first time a covalent Xe–Si bond is predicted in a neutral molecule.

Hydrogen bonding as a modulator of aromaticity and electronic structure of selected ortho-hydroxybenzaldehyde derivatives.

Properties of hydrogen bonds can induce changes in geometric or electronic structure parameters in the vicinity of the bridge. Here, we focused primarily on the influence of intramolecular H-bonding on the molecular properties in selected ortho-hydroxybenzaldehydes, with additional restricted insight into substituent effects. Static models were obtained in the framework of density functional theory at B3LYP/6-311+G(d,p) level. The electronic structure parameters evolution was analyzed on the basis of Atoms In Molecules (AIM) and Natural Bond Orbitals methods. The aromaticity changes related to the variable proton position and presence of substituents were studied using Harmonic Oscillator Model of Aromaticity (HOMA), Nucleus-Independent Chemical Shift (NICS) and AIM-based parameter of Matta and Hernández-Trujillo. Finally, Car-Parrinello molecular dynamics was applied to study variability of the hydrogen bridge dynamics. The interplay between effects of the substitution and variable position of the bridged proton was discussed. It was found that the hydrogen bond energies are ca. 9-10 kcal/mol, and the bridged proton exhibits some degree of penetration into the acceptor region. The covalent character of the studied hydrogen bond was most observable when the bridged proton reached the middle position between the donor and acceptor regions. The aromaticity indexes showed that the aromaticity of the central phenyl ring is strongly dependent on the bridged proton position. Correlations between these parameters were found and discussed. In the applied time-scale, the analysis of time evolution of geometric parameters showed that the resonance strengthening does not play a crucial role in the studied compounds.

Structural and spectroscopic properties of an aliphatic boronic acid studied by combination of experimental and theoretical methods

Boronic acids have emerged as one of the most useful class of organoboron molecules, with application in synthesis, catalysis, analytical chemistry, supramolecular chemistry, biology, and medicine. In this study, the structural and spectroscopic properties of n-butylboronic acid were investigated using experimental and theoretical approaches. X-ray crystallography method provided structural information on the studied compound in the solid state. Infrared and Raman spectroscopy served as tools for the data collection on vibrational modes of the analyzed system. Car-Parrinello molecular dynamics simulations in solid state were carried out at 100 and 293 K to investigate an environmental and temperature influence on molecular properties of the n-butylboronic acid. Analysis of interatomic distances of atoms involved in the intermolecular hydrogen bond was performed to study the proton motion in the crystal. Subsequently, Fourier transform of autocorrelation functions of atomic velocities and dipole moment was applied to study the vibrational properties of the compound. In addition, the inclusion of quantum nature of proton motion was performed for O-H stretching vibrational mode by application of the envelope method for intermolecular hydrogen-bonded system. The second part of the computational study consists of simulations performed in vacuo. Monomeric and dimeric forms of the n-butylboronic acid were investigated using density functional theory and Moller-Plesset second-order perturbation method. The basis set superposition error was estimated. Finally, atoms in molecules (AIM) theory was applied to study electron density topology and properties of the intermolecular hydrogen bond. Successful reproduction of the molecular properties of the n-butylboronic acid by computational methodologies, presented in the manuscript, indicates the way for future studies of large boron-containing organic systems of importance in biology or materials science.

First-Principle Molecular Dynamics Study of Selected Schiff and Mannich Bases: Application of Two-Dimensional Potential of Mean Force to Systems with Strong Intramolecular Hydrogen Bonds.

Car-Parrinello Molecular Dynamics simulations were performed for selected anharmonic systems, i.e., Schiff and Mannich base-type compounds, to investigate the vibrational properties associated with O-H stretching. All calculations were performed in the gas phase to compare them with available experimental data. First the vibrational properties of the two compounds were analyzed on the basis of well-established approaches:  Fourier transformation of the autocorrelation function of both the atomic velocities and dipole moments. Then path integral molecular dynamics simulations were performed to demonstrate the influence of quantum effects on the protons position in the hydrogen bridge. In addition, quantum effects were incorporated a posteriori into calculations of O-H stretching envelopes for the Schiff and Mannich bases. Proton potential snapshots were extracted from the ab initio molecular dynamics trajectory. Vibrational Schrödinger equations (one- and two-dimensional) were solved numerically for the snapshots, and the O-H stretching envelopes were calculated as a superposition of the 0→1 transitions. Subsequently, one- and two-dimensional potentials of mean force (1D and 2D pmf) were calculated for the proton stretching mode from the proton vibrational eigenfunctions and eigenvalues incorporating statistical sampling and nuclear quantum effects. The results show that the applied methodologies are in good agreement with experimental infrared spectra. Additionally, it is demonstrated that the 2D pmf method could be applied in systems with strong anharmonicity to describe the properties of the O-H stretching mode more accurately. Future applications of the 2D pmf technique include, in principle, large biomolecular systems treated within the QM/MM framework.

Spectroscopic Properties of a Strongly Anharmonic Mannich Base N-oxide

Car-Parrinello molecular dynamics simulations in vacuum and in the solid state are performed on a strongly anharmonic system, namely, 2-(N-diethylamino-N-oxymethyl)-4,6-dichlorophenol, to investigate its molecular and spectroscopic properties. The investigated compound contains two slightly different molecules in the crystal cell with very short intramolecular hydrogen bonds (of 2.400 and 2.423 A), as determined previously by neutron diffraction. The vibrational properties of the compound are studied on the basis of standard approaches, that is, Fourier transformation of the autocorrelation functions of the atomic velocities and dipole moments. Then, the trajectory obtained from ab initio molecular dynamics is sampled and the obtained snapshots are used to solve the vibrational Schrödinger equations and to calculate the O--H stretching envelope as a superposition of the 0-->1 transition. Using an envelope method, the a posteriori quantum effects are included in the O--H stretching. In addition, NMR spectra are calculated also using the obtained snapshots. One- and two-dimensional potentials of mean force (1D and 2D pmf) are derived to explain the details of the proton dynamics. The computational results are supported by NMR experimental data. In addition, the calculated results are compared with previously published X-ray, neutron diffraction, and spectroscopic descriptions. A detailed analysis of the bridged protons dynamics is thus obtained. The application of 1D and 2D pmf in a system with a strong bridged-proton delocalization is also demonstrated.