Acridinium Ester Chemiluminescence: Methyl Substitution on the Acridine Moiety.

Methyl groups were introduced on the acridine moiety in chemiluminescent acridinium esters that have electron-withdrawing groups (trifluoromethyl, cyano, nitro, ethoxycarbonyl) at the 4-position on the phenyl ester. The introduction of methyl groups at the 2-, 2,7-, and 2,3,6,7-positions on the acridine moiety shifted the optimal pH that gave relatively strong chemiluminescence intensity from neutral conditions to alkaline conditions. 4-(Ethoxycarbonyl)phenyl 2,3,6,7,10-pentamethyl-10λ4-acridine-9-carboxylate, trifluoromethanesulfonate salt showed long-lasting chemiluminescence under alkaline conditions. Acridinium esters to determine hydrogen peroxide concentration at pH 7-10 were newly developed.

Synthesis and Structure-Photophysics Evaluation of 2-N-Amino-quinazolines: Small Molecule Fluorophores for Solution and Solid State.

2-N-aminoquinazolines were prepared by consecutive SN Ar functionalization. X-ray structures display the nitrogen lone pair of the 2-N-morpholino group in conjugation with the electron deficient quinazoline core and thus representing electronic push-pull systems. 2-N-aminoquinazolines show a positive solvatochromism and are fluorescent in solution and in solid state with quantum yields up to 0.73. Increase in electron donor strength of the 2-amino substituent causes a red-shift of the intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) band (300-400 nm); whereas the photoluminescence emission maxima (350-450 nm) is also red-shifted significantly along with an enhancement in photoluminescence efficiency. HOMO-LUMO energies were estimated by a combination of electrochemical and photophysical methods and correlate well to those obtained by computational methods. ICT properties are theoretically attributed to an excitation to Rydberg-MO in SAC-CI method, which can be interpreted as n-π* excitation. 7-Amino-2-N-morpholino-4-methoxyquinazoline responds to acidic conditions with significant increases in photoluminescence intensity revealing a new turn-on/off fluorescence probe.

N-C bond formation between two anilines coordinated to a ruthenium center in cis-form affording a 3,5-cyclohexadiene-1,2-diimine moiety.

Ruthenium complexes containing two anilines or its derivatives, cis-[RuII(NH2C6H5)2(bpy)2]2+ ([1]2+) and cis-[RuII(NH2C6H4(4-CH3))2(bpy)2]2+ ([2]2+), were oxidized by four molar equivalents of (NH4)4[CeIV(SO4)4]·2H2O to give N 1-phenylcyclohexa-3,5-diene-1,2-diimineruthenium(ii) complexes, cis-[RuII(NHC6H4 NC6H5)(bpy)2]2+ ([4]2+) and cis-[RuII(NHC6H3(4-CH3)NC6H4(4-CH3))(bpy)2]2+ ([5]2+), respectively, through an N-C bond formation between two aniline ligands cis-coordinated to the ruthenium center.

Theoretical analysis of the kinetic isotope effect on carboxylation in RubisCO.

Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RubisCO) fixes atmospheric carbon dioxide into bioavailable sugar molecules. It is also well known that a kinetic isotope effect (KIE; CO2 carbon atoms) accompanies the carboxylation process. To describe the reaction and the KIE α, two different types of molecular dynamics (MD) simulations (ab initio MD and classical MD) have been performed with an Own N-layered Integrated molecular Orbitals and molecular Mechanics (ONIOM)-hybrid model. A channel structure for CO2 transport has been observed during the MD simulation in RubisCO, and assuming the reaction path from the inlet to the product through the coordinate complex with Mg2+ , simulations have been performed on several molecular configuration models fixing several distances between CO2 and ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate along the channel. Free energy analysis and diffusion coefficient analysis have been evaluated for different phases of the process. It is confirmed that the isotopic fractionation effect for CO2 containing either 13 C or 12 C would appear through the transiting path in the channel structure identified in RubisCO. The estimated isotope fractionation constant was quite close to the experimental value.

Framework Conversion of Oxido-Bridged Dinuclear Ruthenium Complexes.

Syntheses, properties, and reactions of hydroxido- or oxido-bridged dinuclear ruthenium complexes bearing a tridentate auxiliary ligand, ethylbis(2-pyridylmethyl)amine (ebpma) or benzylbis(2-pyridylmethyl)amine (bbpma), have been investigated. Reduction reactions of a singly oxido-bridged diruthenium complex bearing ebpma, [{RuIII,IVCl2(ebpma)}2(µ-O)]+ ([2Cl]+), by zinc in acetonitrile afforded an acetonitrile-substituted singly oxido-bridged complex in the RuIII-RuIII isovalent state, [{RuIII,IIICl(NCCH3)(ebpma)}2(µ-O)]2+ ([2CH3CN]2+). Chlorido ligand abstraction reactions using silver salts have also been attempted. Through a reaction of [2Cl]+ with two equimolar amounts of AgNO3 in water-acetone, a singly oxido-bridged complex having an aqua and a hydroxido, [{RuIIICl(OH2)(ebpma)}(µ-O){RuIVCl(OH)(ebpma)}]2+ ([2H2O-OH]2+), was obtained. Reactions with four equimolar amounts of AgL (L = CH3COO- or NO3-) in water-acetone gave doubly oxido- and bidentate oxygen donor ligand-bridged diruthenium complexes of Ru(III)-Ru(IV), [{RuIII,IV(ebpma)}2(µ-O)2(µ-L)]2+ ([3L]2+; L = O2CCH3; [3CH3COO]2+, L = O2NO; [3NO3]2+). Reactions of [3L]2+ under acidic conditions afforded a corresponding one-protonated species having the {Ru2(µ-O)(µ-OH)} core. Reactivity and electronic structure of the oxido-bridged diruthenium complexes were studied by electrochemical, spectroscopic, and theoretical methods.

Total Absorption Cross Section for UV Excitation of Sulfur Monoxide.

In a new study on sulfur monoxide, new ab initio potential energy curves are developed for excited states A3Π, B3Σ-, C3Π, and C'3Π and for three states that are unassigned in the literature, which we numerically name 33Σ-, 43Π, and 53Π. All these excited states have allowed transitions from ground state, X3Σ-. The ab initio calculations were performed using the MRCI-F12+Q/aug-cc-pV(5+d)Z level of theory implemented in MOLPRO2015. On the basis of close-coupling R-matrix theory, fine structure absorption cross sections of isotopically substituted sulfur monoxide are calculated for wavelengths of 190-300 nm. The spectra are shown at the highest possible resolution (FWHH ≈ 0.15-0.18 cm-1) for reference and future studies. The effects of self-shielding and possible mutual shielding are discussed.

Enhancement effect on the chemiluminescence of acridinium esters under neutral conditions.

Enhancement effect on the chemiluminescence of acridinium ester derivatives under neutral conditions was investigated. Additions of phenols did not enhance the chemiluminescence intensities of acridinium ester derivatives in the presence of horseradish peroxidase and hydrogen peroxide. Additions of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide apparently enhanced the chemiluminescence intensities of phenyl 10-methyl-10λ4 -acridine-9-carboxylate derivatives with electron-withdrawing groups at the 4-position of the phenyl group. In particular, the chemiluminescence intensity of 4-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl 10-methyl-10λ4 -acridine-9-carboxylate trifluoromethanesulfonate salt was 5.5 times stronger in the presence of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide than in its absence at pH 7. The chemiluminescence intensity of 3,4-dicyano-phenyl 10-methyl-10λ4 -acridine-9-carboxylate trifluoromethanesulfonate salt was 46 times stronger in the presence of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide at pH 7 than in its absence at pH 10.

Strongly Chemiluminescent Acridinium Esters under Neutral Conditions: Synthesis, Properties, Determination, and Theoretical Study.

Various novel acridinium ester derivatives having phenyl and biphenyl moieties were synthesized, and their optimal chemiluminescence conditions were investigated. Several strongly chemiluminescent acridinium esters under neutral conditions were found, and then these derivatives were used to detect hydrogen peroxide and glucose. Acridinium esters having strong electron-withdrawing groups such as cyano, methoxycarbonyl, and nitro at the 4-position of the phenyl moiety in phenyl 10-methyl-10λ4-acridine-9-carboxylate trifluoromethanesulfonate salt showed strong chemiluminescence intensities. The chemiluminescence intensity of 3,4-dicyanophenyl 10-methyl-10λ4-acridine-9-carboxylate trifluoromethanesulfonate salt was approximately 100 times stronger than that of phenyl 10-methyl-10λ4-acridine-9-carboxylate trifluoromethanesulfonate salt at pH 7. The linear calibration ranges of hydrogen peroxide and glucose were 0.05-10 mM and 10-2000 µM using 3,4-(dimethoxycarbonyl)phenyl 10-methyl-10λ4-acridine-9-carboxylate trifluoromethanesulfonate salt at pH 7 and pH 7.5, respectively. The proposed chemiluminescence reaction mechanism of acridinium ester via a dioxetanone structure was evaluated via quantum chemical calculation on density functional theory. The proposed mechanism was composed of the nucleophilic addition reaction of hydroperoxide anion, dioxetanone ring formation, and nonadiabatic transition due to spin-orbit coupling around the transition state (TS) to the triplet state (T1) following the decomposition pathway. The TS which appeared in the thermal decomposition would be a rate-determining step for all three processes.

Dinuclear Ruthenium(III)-Ruthenium(IV) Complexes, Having a Doubly Oxido-Bridged and Acetato- or Nitrato-Capped Framework.

Dinuclear ruthenium complexes in a mixed-valence state of Ru(III)-Ru(IV), having a doubly oxido-bridged and acetato- or nitrato-capped framework, [{Ru(III,IV)(ebpma)}2(µ-O)2(µ-L)](PF6)2 [ebpma = ethylbis(2-pyridylmethyl)amine; L = CH3COO(-) (1), NO3(-) (2)], were synthesized. In aqueous solutions, the diruthenium complex 1 showed multiple redox processes accompanied by proton transfers depending on the pH. The protonated complex of 1, which is described as 1H+, was obtained.

Development of semiclassical molecular dynamics simulation method.

Various quantum mechanical effects such as nonadiabatic transitions, quantum mechanical tunneling and coherence play crucial roles in a variety of chemical and biological systems. In this paper, we propose a method to incorporate tunneling effects into the molecular dynamics (MD) method, which is purely based on classical mechanics. Caustics, which define the boundary between classically allowed and forbidden regions, are detected along classical trajectories and the optimal tunneling path with minimum action is determined by starting from each appropriate caustic. The real phase associated with tunneling can also be estimated. Numerical demonstration with use of a simple collinear chemical reaction O + HCl → OH + Cl is presented in order to help the reader to well comprehend the method proposed here. Generalization to the on-the-fly ab initio version is rather straightforward. By treating the nonadiabatic transitions at conical intersections by the Zhu-Nakamura theory, new semiclassical MD methods can be developed.

Electronically nonadiabatic wave packet propagation using frozen Gaussian scattering.

We present an approach, which allows to employ the adiabatic wave packet propagation technique and semiclassical theory to treat the nonadiabatic processes by using trajectory hopping. The approach developed generates a bunch of hopping trajectories and gives all additional information to incorporate the effect of nonadiabatic coupling into the wave packet dynamics. This provides an interface between a general adiabatic frozen Gaussian wave packet propagation method and the trajectory surface hopping technique. The basic idea suggested in [A. D. Kondorskiy and H. Nakamura, J. Chem. Phys. 120, 8937 (2004)] is revisited and complemented in the present work by the elaboration of efficient numerical algorithms. We combine our approach with the adiabatic Herman-Kluk frozen Gaussian approximation. The efficiency and accuracy of the resulting method is demonstrated by applying it to popular benchmark model systems including three Tully's models and 24D model of pyrazine. It is shown that photoabsorption spectrum is successfully reproduced by using a few hundreds of trajectories. We employ the compact finite difference Hessian update scheme to consider feasibility of the ab initio "on-the-fly" simulations. It is found that this technique allows us to obtain the reliable final results using several Hessian matrix calculations per trajectory.

Development of efficient time-evolution method based on three-term recurrence relation.

The advantage of the real-time (RT) propagation method is a direct solution of the time-dependent Schrödinger equation which describes frequency properties as well as all dynamics of a molecular system composed of electrons and nuclei in quantum physics and chemistry. Its applications have been limited by computational feasibility, as the evaluation of the time-evolution operator is computationally demanding. In this article, a new efficient time-evolution method based on the three-term recurrence relation (3TRR) was proposed to reduce the time-consuming numerical procedure. The basic formula of this approach was derived by introducing a transformation of the operator using the arcsine function. Since this operator transformation causes transformation of time, we derived the relation between original and transformed time. The formula was adapted to assess the performance of the RT time-dependent Hartree-Fock (RT-TDHF) method and the time-dependent density functional theory. Compared to the commonly used fourth-order Runge-Kutta method, our new approach decreased computational time of the RT-TDHF calculation by about factor of four, showing the 3TRR formula to be an efficient time-evolution method for reducing computational cost.

Effects of cyclodextrins on intramolecular photoinduced electron transfer in a boronic acid fluorophore.

An inclusion complex consisting of a boronic acid fluorophore (C1-APB) and ß-cyclodextrin (ß-CyD) acts as a supramolecular sugar sensor whose response mechanism is based on photoinduced electron transfer (PET) from the excited pyrene to the boronic acid. We have investigated the PET process in C1-APB/CyD complexes by using time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) measurements at room temperature, and have succeeded in estimating the electron-transfer time to be about 1 ns. We have also studied the effects of CyDs on the PET process by comparing two kinds of CyDs (α-CyD, ß-CyD) under different water-dimethyisulfoxide (DMSO) concentration conditions. We found that the CyDs interacting with the boronic acid moiety completely inhibits PET quenching and increases the monomer fluorescence intensity.

Nonadiabatic calculations of ultraviolet absorption cross section of sulfur monoxide: isotopic effects on the photodissociation reaction.

Ultraviolet absorption cross sections of the main and substituted sulfur monoxide (SO) isotopologues were calculated using R-Matrix expansion technique. Energies, transition dipole moments, and nonadiabatic coupling matrix elements were calculated at MRCI/AV6Z level. The calculated absorption cross section of (32)S(16)O was compared with experimental spectrum; the spectral feature and the absolute value of photoabsorption cross sections are in good agreement. Our calculation predicts a long lived photoexcited SO* species which causes large non-mass dependent isotopic effects depending on the excitation energy in the ultraviolet region.

Photochemical dynamics of indolylmaleimide derivatives.

On-the-fly nonadiabatic ab initio molecular dynamics simulations have been carried out for three anionic species of indolylmaleimides (3-(1H-3-indolyl)-2,5-dihydro-1H-2,5-pyrroledione, IM) to clarify the mechanisms of photochemical reactions. The results are obtained for (i) a monovalent anion with a deprotonated indole NH group (IM(-)'), (ii) a monovalent anion with a deprotonated maleimide NH group (IM(-)'') and (iii) a divalent anion with doubly deprotonated indole and the maleimide NH groups (IM(2-)). Quantum chemical calculations are treated at the three state averaged complete-active space self-consistent field level for 6 electrons in 5 orbitals with the cc-pVDZ basis set (CAS (6, 5) SCF/cc-pVDZ). Molecular dynamics simulations are performed with electronically nonadiabatic transitions included using the Zhu-Nakamura version of the trajectory surface hopping (ZN-TSH) method. It is found that the nonadiabatic transitions occur accompanied by the stretching and shrinking motions of the N(7)-C(8) bond in the case of IM(-)' and the C(11)-N(12) bond in IM(2-) rather than the twisting motion of the dihedral angle. We also found that the ultrafast S(2)→ S(1) nonadiabatic transitions occur through the conical intersection (CoIn) right after photoexcitation to S(2) in IM(-)' and IM(2-). Furthermore, the S(1)→ S(0) nonadiabatic transitions are found to take place in IM(-)'. It is concluded that IM(2-) would mainly contribute to the photoemission, because the S(1)← S(0) and S(2)← S(0) transitions of IM(-)'' are dipole-forbidden transitions and, moreover, IM(2-) is found to be the only species to stay in the S(1) state without non-radiative decay.

QM/MM trajectory surface hopping approach to photoisomerization of rhodopsin and isorhodopsin: the origin of faster and more efficient isomerization for rhodopsin.

The photoinduced cis-trans isomerization dynamics of rhodopsin and isorhodopsin are studied using a newly developed hybrid QM/MM trajectory surface hopping MD scheme based on the Zhu-Nakamura theory for nonadiabatic transitions. Rhodopsin and isorhodopsin have 11-cis and 9-cis forms of retinal as chromophore and the two proteins are isomerized to bathorhodopsin enclosing the all-trans form. The simulation reproduced faster and more efficient isomerization in rhodopsin than in isorhodopsin. In the excited state, rhodopsin shows a straightforward dynamics, whereas isorhodopsin dynamics is rather complicated and in a back-and-forth manner. The latter complicated dynamics would be mainly due to a narrow space near the active dihedral angle ═C8-C9═C10-C11═ (ϕ9) created by Thr 118 and Tyr 268 in opsin. Rhodopsin gives bathorhodopsin only while isorhodopsin yields a byproduct. The rigorous selectivity in rhodopsin would be another reason why rhodopsin is selected biologically. Comparison with our previous opsin-free investigations reveals that opsin tends to confine the twist of the active dihedral to only one direction and funnels transitions into the vicinity of minimum energy conical intersections (MECI). The twist-confinement totally blocks simultaneous twisting of ϕ9 and ϕ11 (═C10-C11═C12-C13═) and enhances the quantum yields. The opposite rotation of ϕ9 and ϕ11 ("wring-a-wet-towel" motion) takes place upon photoexcitation, which also does without opsin. The wring-a-wet-towel motion is dynamically enhanced in comparison with the one expected from locations of the MECI. The present simulation reveals that the Weiss-Warshel model for cis-trans photoisomerization is not applicable for rhodopsin because the branching ratio after transition is crucial.

Theoretical study of photo-physical properties of indolylmaleimide derivatives.

Photo-physical properties of bromo-indolylmaleimide (IM-Br), indole-succinimide (IS), and their anions were theoretically investigated compared with the previous theoretical result for indolylmaleimide (IM) [Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2010, 12, 9783]. The energies for the electronic excited states as well as the ground states were computed for these molecules using the multi-reference perturbation calculations based on the second order Rayleigh-Schrödinger perturbation theory (CASPT2) at the cc-pVDZ basis set level. The electron-accepting or electron-donating effect caused by bromine-substitution was discussed in the intra-molecular charge transfer (ICT) mechanism. The order of natural orbitals of the bromine-substituted monovalent anion with a deprotonated indole NH group (I((-))M-Br) was found to be rearranged by the effect of electron-donation, which leads to pseudo-crossing of the potential energy cures of the S(1) and S(2) states. The large stokes shift observed for I((-))M-Br was due to pseudo-crossing. Meanwhile, IM and IM-Br show abnormal deprotonation, which is explained by the charge distribution on the indole and maleimide moieties. Finally, the monovalent anions I((-))M-Br and I((-))M by a deprotonation of the indole NH end and the neutral IS were proposed to be the most feasible candidates corresponding to the experimental spectra in solution.

Isomerization reaction between linear AlNC and AlCN including the X 1Σ+ and à 1Π states studied by three-dimensional wave packet propagation.

Excitation transfers between linear AlNC and AlCN via the à (1)Π (1 (1)A", 2 (1)A')-X (1)Σ(+) transition were studied by a wave packet propagation method as applied to a simple system for an isomerization reaction. The photoabsorption and fluorescence spectra calculated in this work are in good agreement with Einstein's A and B coefficients reported in our previous paper [I. Tokue and S. Nanbu, J. Chem. Phys. 124, 224301 (2006)]. In the 2 (1)A'-X (1)Σ(+) excitation of linear AlNC, both isomerization to linear AlCN and dissociation to Al + CN can occur; the probability of both decay channels strongly depends on the vibrational modes of the initial wave packet. The 1 (1)A"-X (1)Σ(+) excitation of linear AlNC results primarily in dissociation with isomerization being found to be a relatively minor phenomenon. For the linear AlCN excitation, vibrational levels above 1000 cm(-1) occur for both isomerization and dissociation. The isomerization of AlNC ↔ AlCN was found to occur after the à (1)Π-X (1)Σ(+) fluorescence of AlNC and AlCN, with even the initial wave packet being made with the vibrational ground level of the à (1)Π state, whereas no dissociation was recognized for any of the cases calculated in this study using lower vibrational levels as initial wave packets. The procedure for wave packet propagation employed in this study is concluded to be very effective for analyzing in detail the reaction dynamics of isomerization for triatomic molecules.

Fluorescence properties of 2-aryl substituted indoles.

The fluorescence properties of 2-phenylindole, 2-naphthylindole and 2-anthracenylindole were investigated. 2-Anthracenylindole was newly synthesized by Suzuki-Miyaura's coupling. The fluorescence quantum yield of 2-phenylindole was the highest and the fluorescence emission maximum wavelength of 2-anthracenylindole was the longest. The ab initio quantum chemical calculation of the 2-anthracenylindole showed that the HOMO and LUMO of 2-anthracenylindole were localized in the anthracene moiety.

Nonadiabatic ab initio dynamics of a model protonated Schiff base of 9-cis retinal.

The dynamics of the photoisomerization of a model protonated Schiff base of 9-cis retinal in isorhodopsin is investigated using nonadiabatic molecular dynamics simulation combined with ab initio quantum chemical calculations on-the-fly. The quantum chemical part is treated at the complete-active space self-consistent field level for six electrons in six active pi orbitals with the 6-31G basis set (CASSCF(6,6)/6-31G). The probabilities of nonadiabatic transitions between the S(1) ((1)pipi*) and S(0) states are estimated in light of the Zhu-Nakamura theory. The photoinduced cis-trans isomerization of 9-cis retinal proceeds slower than that of its 11-cis analogue and at a lower quantum yield, confirming experimental observations. An energetic barrier in the excited state impedes the elongation and twist of the C(9)=C(10) stretch and torsion coordinates, respectively, resulting in the trapping of trajectories before transition. Consequently, the isomerization takes longer time and the transition more often occurs at smaller twist angle of =C(8)-C(9)=C(10)-C(11)=, which leads to regeneration of the 9-cis reactant. Thus, neither the smaller twist observed in the X-ray crystal nor the slower movement of nuclei in the transition region would be the main reason for the longer reaction time and lower yield. A well-known space-saving asynchronous bicycle pedal or crankshaft photoisomerization mechanism is found to be operational in 9-cis retinal. The simulation in vacuo suggests that the excited-state barrier and the photoisomerization itself are intrinsic properties of the visual chromophore and not triggered mainly by the protein environment that surrounds the chromophore.