We present the first evidence for an unusual stable metallocene-containing expanded porphyrinoid macrocycle that was synthesized by condensing one equivalent of 1,1'-bis[phenyl(2-pyrroyl)methyl]ferrocene with one equivalent of 5,10-di(p-tolyl)-16-oxa-15,17-dihydrotripyrrane under acid-catalyzed conditions. The formation of ferrocene-incorporated expanded porphyrin macrocycle was confirmed by HR-MS and 1D/2D NMR spectroscopy. The macrocycle was nonaromatic and displayed absorption bands in the region of 420-550 nm. The molecular and electronic structure of the ferrocene-incorporated expanded porphyrin was investigated by DFT methods. The DFT calculations indicated a partially twisted structure of the molecule, and the extent of torsional distortion was larger than previously observed for ruthenocenoporphyrinoids and ferrocenothiaporphyrin. The HOMO and LUMO states that were obtained from the DFT calculations indicated partial charge density on all four pyrrole nitrogen atoms and the furanyl oxygen atom in the HOMO state and partial charge density on the α and β carbon atoms in the LUMO state. In addition, the ferrocene moiety displayed the presence of partial charge density on the Fe atom and the cp rings in both the HOMO and LUMO states. Moreover, DFT studies of the diprotonated form of macrocycle indicated that the diprotonated form also retained a synclinal conformation and that its torsional strain was slightly higher than its free base form.
Site-directed spin labeling electron paramagnetic resonance (SDSL EPR) spectroscopy is a powerful tool to determine solvent accessibility, side-chain dynamics, and inter-spin distances at specific sites in biological macromolecules. This information provides important insights into the structure and dynamics of both natural and designed proteins and protein complexes. Here, we discuss the application of SDSL EPR spectroscopy in probing the charge-transfer cofactors in photosynthetic reaction centers (RC) such as photosystem I (PSI) and the bacterial reaction center (bRC). Photosynthetic RCs are large multi-subunit proteins (molecular weight≥300 kDa) that perform light-driven charge transfer reactions in photosynthesis. These reactions are carried out by cofactors that are paramagnetic in one of their oxidation states. This renders the RCs unsuitable for conventional nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy investigations. However, the presence of native paramagnetic centers and the ability to covalently attach site-directed spin labels in RCs makes them ideally suited for the application of SDSL EPR spectroscopy. The paramagnetic centers serve as probes of conformational changes, dynamics of subunit assembly, and the relative motion of cofactors and peptide subunits. In this review, we describe novel applications of SDSL EPR spectroscopy for elucidating the effects of local structure and dynamics on the electron-transfer cofactors of photosynthetic RCs. Because SDSL EPR Spectroscopy is uniquely suited to provide dynamic information on protein motion, it is a particularly useful method in the engineering and analysis of designed electron transfer proteins and protein networks. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled Biodesign for Bioenergetics--the design and engineering of electronic transfer cofactors, proteins and protein networks, edited by Ronald L. Koder and J.L. Ross Anderson.
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