Nyiang Kennet Nkungli

Concomitant Effects of Transition Metal Chelation and Solvent Polarity on the First Molecular Hyperpolarizability of 4-Methoxyacetophenone Thiosemicarbazone: A DFT Study

Nonlinear optical (NLO) properties of organic and metal-organic materials are of considerable interest to emerging optoelectronic and photonic technologies. Much work has been carried out on the former materials but the latter ones have received less attention till date. Herein, a density functional theory (DFT) study on the combined effects of transition metal chelation and solvent polarity on the first hyperpolarizability () of 4-methoxyacetophenone thiosemicarbazone (MAPTSC) is reported. MAPTSC exhibits a tautomeric form with higher optical nonlinearity rendering its NLO response in polar solvents potentially switchable. Our results have revealed significant modifications of the first hyperpolarizability of MAPTSC upon complexation with different transition metal chlorides in the presence of solvents with varying dielectric constants. Therefore, its second-order NLO response is highly tunable by the synergy of transition metal chelation and solvent polarity. MAPTSC and its Zn(II) and Pt(II) chloride complexes are promising NLO materials because their gas-phase values are larger than those of the prototype push-pull molecules, para-nitroaniline (PNA) and urea, by factors of about 1.40–1.76 and 19.57–37.24, respectively; these factors greatly increase in polar solvent medium. Moreover, they possess high optical transparencies in the visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum which mitigate transparency/nonlinearity trade-offs, thereby increasing the likelihood of broad band NLO response.

Structural and Antioxidant Properties of Compounds Obtained from Fe2+ Chelation by Juglone and Two of Its Derivatives: DFT, QTAIM, and NBO Studies

The chelating ability of juglone and two of its derivatives towards Fe2+ion and the antioxidant activity (AOA) of the resulting chelates and complexes (in the presence of H2O and CH3OH as ligands) in gas phase is reported via bond dissociation enthalpy, ionization potential, proton dissociation enthalpy, proton affinity, and electron transfer enthalpy. The DFT/B3LYP level of theory associated with the 6-31+G(d,p) and 6-31G(d) Pople-style basis sets on the atoms of the ligands and the central Fe(II), respectively, was used. Negative chelation free energies obtained revealed that juglone derivatives possessing the O-H substituent (L2) have the greatest ability to chelate Fe2+ ion. Apart from 1B, thermodynamic descriptors of the AOA showed that the direct hydrogen atom transfer is the preferred mechanism of the studied molecules. NBO analysis showed that the Fe-ligand bonds are all formed through metal to ligand charge transfer. QTAIM studies revealed that among all the Fe-ligand bonds, the O1-Fe bond of 1A is purely covalent. The aforementioned results show that the ligands can be used to fight against Fe(II) toxicity, thus preserving human health, and fight against the deterioration of industrial products. In addition, most of the complexes studied have shown a better AOA than their corresponding ligands.

Theoretical analysis of the binding of iron(III) protoporphyrin IX to 4-methoxyacetophenone thiosemicarbazone via DFT-D3, MEP, QTAIM, NCI, ELF, and LOL studies

Thiosemicarbazones display diverse pharmacological properties, including antimalarial activities. Their pharmacological activities have been studied in depth, but little of this research has focused on their antimalarial mode of action. To elucidate this antimalarial mechanism, we investigated the nature of the interactions between iron(III) protoporphyrin IX (Fe(III)PPIX) and the thione–thiol tautomers of 4-methoxyacetophenone thiosemicarbazone (MAPTSC). Dispersion-corrected density functional theory (DFT-D3), the quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QTAIM), the noncovalent interaction (NCI) index, the electron localization function (ELF), the localized orbital locator (LOL), and thermodynamic calculations were employed in this work. Fe(III)PPIX–MAPTSC binding is expected to inhibit hemozoin formation, thereby preventing Fe(III)PPIX detoxification in plasmodia. Preliminary studies geared toward the identification of atomic binding sites in the thione–thiol tautomers of MAPTSC were carried out using molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) maps and conceptual DFT-based local reactivity indices. The thionic sulfur and the 2N-azomethine nitrogen/thiol sulfur of, respectively, the thione and thiol tautomers of MAPTSC were identified as the most favorable nucleophilic sites for electrophilic attack. The negative values of the computed Fe(III)PPIX–MAPTSC binding energies, enthalpies, and Gibbs free energies are indicative of the existence and stability of Fe(III)PPIX–MAPTSC complexes. MAPTSC–Fe(III) coordinate bonds and strong hydrogen bonds (N–H···O) between the NH2 group in MAPTSC and the C=O group in one propionate side chain of Fe(III)PPIX are crucial to Fe(III)PPIX–MAPTSC binding. QTAIM, NCI, ELF, and LOL analyses revealed a subtle interplay of weak noncovalent interactions dominated by dispersive-like van der Waals interactions between Fe(III)PPIX and MAPTSC that stabilize the Fe(III)PPIX–MAPTSC complexes.

Quantum Chemical Investigation on the Antioxidant Activity of Neutral and Anionic Forms of Juglone: Metal Chelation and Its Effect on Radical Scavenging Activity

The chelation ability of divalent Mg, Ca, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, and monovalent Cu ions by neutral and anionic forms of juglone has been investigated at DFT/B3LYP/6-31

Structural Properties and Reactive Site Selectivity of Some Transition Metal Complexes of 2,2′(1E,1′E)-(ethane-1,2-diylbis(azan-1-yl-1-ylidene))bis(phenylmethan-1-yl-1-ylidene)dibenzoic Acid: DFT, Conceptual DFT, QTAIM, and MEP Studies

Herein is presented a density functional theory (DFT) study of reactivity and structural properties of transition metal complexes of the Schiff base ligand 2,2′(1E,1′E)-(ethane-1,2-diylbis(azan-1-yl-1-ylidene))bis(phenylmethan-1-yl-1-ylidene)dibenzoic acid (hereafter denoted EDA2BB) with Cu(II), Mn(II), Ni(II), and Co(II). The quantum theory of atoms-in-molecules (QTAIM), conceptual DFT, natural population analysis (NPA), and molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) methods have been used. Results have revealed a distorted octahedral geometry around the central metal ion in each gas phase complex. In the DMSO solvent, a general axial elongation of metal-oxygen bonds involving ancillary water ligands has been observed, suggestive of loosely bound water molecules to the central metal ion that may be acting as solvent molecules. Weak, medium, and strong intramolecular hydrogen bonds along with hydrogen-hydrogen and van der Waals interactions have been elucidated in the complexes investigated via geometric and QTAIM analyses. From the chemical hardness values, the complex [Co(EDA2BB)(OH2)2] is the hardest, while [Cu(EDA2BB)(OH2)2] is the softest. Based on the global electrophilicity index, the complexes [Ni(EDA2BB)(OH2)2] and [Cu(EDA2BB)(OH2)2] are the strongest and weakest electrophiles, respectively, among the complexes studied. In conclusion, the reactivity of the complexes is improved vis-à-vis the ligand, and stable geometries of the complexes are identified, alongside their prominent electrophilic and nucleophilic sites.

A DFT Study of Some Structural and Spectral Properties of 4-Methoxyacetophenone Thiosemicarbazone and Its Complexes with Some Transition Metal Chlorides: Potent Antimicrobial Agents

Recent studies have shown that 4-methoxyacetophenone thiosemicarbazone (MAPTSC) and its complexes with some transition metal chlorides are potent antimicrobial agents. To deepen the understanding of their structure-activity relationships necessary for rational drug design, their structural and spectral properties, along with thione-thiol tautomerism of MAPTSC, have been studied herein using the density functional theory (DFT). From our results, the thione tautomer of MAPTSC is more stable than the thiol counterpart in ethanolic solution, and thione-to-thiol tautomerization is highly precluded at ambient temperature (25°C) by a high barrier height ≈46.41 kcal/mol. MAPTSC can therefore exist as a mixture of the thione (major) and thiol (minor) tautomers in ethanolic solution at room and higher temperatures. Conformational analysis has revealed five possible conformers of the thione tautomer, of which two are stable enough to be isolated at 25°C. Based on our computed values of MAPTSC-metal(II) binding energies, enthalpies, and Gibbs free energies, the thione tautomer of MAPTSC exhibits a higher affinity for the d8 metal ions Ni(II), Pd(II), and Pt(II) and can therefore efficiently chelate them in chemical and biological systems. Natural population analysis has revealed ligand-metal charge transfer in the MAPTSC complexes studied. A good agreement has been found between calculated and experimentally observed spectral properties (IR, UV-Vis, and NMR).