Substituted α-Phenyl and α-Naphthlyl-N-tert-butyl Nitrones: Synthesis, Spin-Trapping, and Neuroprotection Evaluation.

New derivatives of α-phenyl-N-tert-butyl nitrone (PBN) bearing a hydroxyl, an acetate, or an acetamide substituent on the N-tert-butyl moiety and para-substituted phenyl or naphthlyl moieties were synthesized. Their ability to trap hydroxymethyl radical was evaluated by electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy. The presence of two electron-withdrawing substituents on both sides of the nitronyl function improves the spin-trapping properties, with 4-HOOC-PBN-CH2OAc and 4-HOOC-PBN-CH2NHAc being ∼4× more reactive than PBN. The electrochemical properties of the derivatives were further investigated by cyclic voltammetry and showed that the redox potentials of the nitrones are largely influenced by the nature of the substituents both on the aromatic ring and on the N-tert-butyl function. The acetamide derivatives PBN-CH2NHAc, 4-AcNHCH2-PBN-CH2NHAc, and 4-MeO-PBN-CH2NHAc were the easiest to oxidize. A computational approach was used to rationalize the effect of functionalization on the free energies of nitrone reactivity with hydroxymethyl radical as well as on the electron affinity and ionization potential. Finally, the neuroprotection of the derivatives was evaluated in an in vitro model of cellular injury on cortical neurons. Five derivatives showed good protection at very low concentrations (0.1-10 µM), with PBN-CH2NHAc and 4-HOOC-PBN being the two most promising agents.

Tuning the redox properties of a [4Fe-4S] center to modulate the activity of Mo-bisPGD periplasmic nitrate reductase.

Molybdoenzymes are ubiquitous in living organisms and catalyze, for most of them, oxidation-reduction reactions using a large range of substrates. Periplasmic nitrate reductase (NapAB) from Rhodobacter sphaeroides catalyzes the 2-electron reduction of nitrate into nitrite. Its active site is a Mo bis-(pyranopterin guanine dinucleotide), or Mo-bisPGD, found in most prokaryotic molybdoenzymes. A [4Fe-4S] cluster and two c-type hemes form an intramolecular electron transfer chain that deliver electrons to the active site. Lysine 56 is a highly conserved amino acid which connects, through hydrogen-bonds, the [4Fe-4S] center to one of the pyranopterin ligands of the Mo-cofactor. This residue was proposed to be involved in the intramolecular electron transfer, either defining an electron transfer pathway between the two redox cofactors, and/or modulating their redox properties. In this work, we investigated the role of this lysine by combining site-directed mutagenesis, activity assays, redox titrations, EPR and HYSCORE spectroscopies. Removal of a positively-charged residue at position 56 strongly decreased the redox potential of the [4Fe-4S] cluster at pH 8 by 230 mV to 400 mV in the K56H and K56M mutants, respectively, thus affecting the kinetics of electron transfer from the hemes to the [4Fe-4S] center up to 5 orders of magnitude. This effect was partly reversed at acidic pH in the K56H mutant likely due to protonation of the imidazole ring of the histidine. Overall, our study demonstrates the critical role of a charged residue from the second coordination sphere in tuning the reduction potential of the [4Fe-4S] cluster in RsNapAB and related molybdoenzymes.

α-Phenyl-N-cyclohexyl Nitrones: Preparation and Use as Spin-Traps.

Two bifunctional α-phenyl-N-cyclohexyl nitrones were synthesized with the expectation that the cyclohexyl ring will impart lipophilicity to the molecule, high reactivity to the nitronyl group, and stability to the spin adducts formed. The synthesis of the acid nitrone 4 and its corresponding tert-butyl ester 3 was initiated by a Michael reaction to introduce the cyclohexyl ring. A Zn/AcOH-mediated reduction of the nitro functionality followed by condensation onto benzaldehyde generated the nitronyl function. In agreement with their high lipophilicity values, nitrone 3 was insoluble in water, while nitrone 4 exhibited a poor water solubility. It was determined that the presence of the cyclohexyl ring did not affect either the reduction or oxidation potentials of the nitronyl group in comparison to the classical α-phenyl-N-tert-butylnitrone (PBN). The spin trapping ability of 3 and 4 was investigated by EPR for oxygen- and carbon-centered radicals. In most cases, the nitrones gave rise to a standard six-line EPR spectrum whose values were in agreement with the literature, accompanied by a minor second species. In DMSO, the half-lives of nitrone 3 and 4-OOH adducts were double that of PBN, suggesting that the stabilization comes from the cyclohexyl ring and/or the electronic effect of the carboxylic acid.

Reactivities of substituted α-phenyl-N-tert-butyl nitrones.

In this work, a series of α-phenyl-N-tert-butyl nitrones bearing one, two, or three substituents on the tert-butyl group was synthesized. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) was used to investigate their electrochemical properties and showed a more pronounced substituent effect for oxidation than for reduction. Rate constants of superoxide radical (O2(•-)) reactions with nitrones were determined using a UV-vis stopped-flow method, and phenyl radical (Ph(•)) trapping rate constants were measured by EPR spectroscopy. The effect of N-tert-butyl substitution on the charge density and electron density localization of the nitronyl carbon as well as on the free energies of nitrone reactivity with O2(•-) and HO2(•) were computationally rationalized at the PCM/B3LYP/6-31+G**//B3LYP/6-31G* level of theory. Theoretical and experimental data showed that the rates of the reaction correlate with the nitronyl carbon charge density, suggesting a nucleophilic nature of O2(•-) and Ph(•) addition to the nitronyl carbon atom. Finally, the substituent effect was investigated in cell cultures exposed to hydrogen peroxide and a correlation between the cell viability and the oxidation potential of the nitrones was observed. Through a combination of computational methodologies and experimental methods, new insights into the reactivity of free radicals with nitrone derivatives have been proposed.