The mechanism of methanol photorelease from 2-nitrobenzyl methyl ether (1) and 1-(2-nitrophenyl)ethyl methyl ether (2), and of ATP release from adenosine-5'-triphosphate-[P(3)-(1-(2-nitrophenyl)ethyl)] ester ('caged ATP', 3) was studied in various solvents by laser flash photolysis with UV-vis and IR detection. In addition to the well-known primary aci-nitro transients (A, lambda(max) approximately 400 nm), two further intermediates preceding the release of methanol, namely the corresponding 1,3-dihydrobenz[c]isoxazol-1-ol derivatives (B) and 2-nitrosobenzyl hemiacetals (C), were identified. The dependencies of the reaction rates of A-C on pH and buffer concentrations in aqueous solution were studied in detail. Substantial revision of previously proposed reaction mechanisms for substrate release from 2-nitrobenzyl protecting groups is required: (a) A novel reaction pathway of the aci-tautomers A prevailing in buffered aqueous solutions, e.g., phosphate buffer with pH 7, was found. (b) The cyclic intermediates B were identified for the first time as the products formed by the decay of the aci-tautomers A in solution. A recently proposed reaction pathway bypassing intermediates B (Corrie et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2003, 125, 8546-8554) is shown not to be operative. (c) Hemiacetals C limit the release rate of both 1 (pH < 8) and 2 (pH < 10). This observation is in contrast to a recent claim for related 2-nitrobenzyl methyl ethers (Corrie et al.). Our findings are important for potential applications of the 2-nitrobenzyl protecting group in the determination of physiological response times to bioagents ('caged compounds').

Irradiation of 2-nitrobenzyl alcohol (1, R = H) and 1-(2-nitrophenyl)ethanol (1, R = Me) in various solvents yields 2-nitroso benzaldehyde (4, R = H) and 2-nitroso acetophenone (4 R = Me), respectively, with quantum yields of about 60%. The mechanism of this reaction, known since 1918, was investigated using laser flash photolysis, time-resolved infrared spectroscopy (TRIR), and 18O-labeling experiments. The primary aci-nitro photoproducts 2 react by two competing paths. The balance between the two depends on the reaction medium. Reaction via hydrated nitroso compounds 3 formed by proton transfer prevails in aprotic solvents and in aqueous acid and base. In water, pH 3-8, the classical mechanism of cyclization to benzisoxazolidine intermediates 5, followed by ring opening to carbonyl hydrates 6, predominates. The transient intermediates 3 and 6 were identified by TRIR. Potential energy surfaces for these reactions were mapped by density functional calculations.

Dedicated to Prof. Dr. Edgar Heilbronner on the occasion of his 80th birthdayThe largely reversible, light-induced tautomerization of 2-nitrotoluene (1) to the quinonoid aci-nitro tautomer aci-1 was studied by flash photolysis as a benchmark for comparison with the widely used nitrobenzyl phototriggers (caged compounds). The pH-rate profile for the decay of aci-1 in aqueous solution exhibits downward curvature at pH 3 ± 4, which is attributed to pre-equilibrium ionization of the nitronic acid aci-1 to its anion 1 À (pK a 3.57). Two regions of upward curvature, at pH ca. 6 and`0 (H 0 %À 1), each indicate a change in the reaction mechanism. The elementary reactions that dominate between the curved regions are assigned on the basis of kinetic isotope effects and the observation of general acid catalysis: Hydronium ions regenerate 2-nitrotoluene by C-protonation of 1 À in the pH range of 0 ± 6, and H 2 O is the proton source at pH b 6. A hird, irreversible Nef-type isomerization of aci-1 prevails in highly acidic solutions (pH`0). The equilibrium constant for the thermal tautomerization of 1 to aci-1 is estimated as pK T 17.0 AE 0.2 based on kinetic data.

The mechanism for the photoinduced release of glycolic acid from its 2-nitrobenzyl ether was reinvestigated. The pH-dependent rate constants of the thermal reactions initiated by irradiation are similar to those reported previously for 2-nitrobenzyl methyl ether. A hemiacetal intermediate that limits the release rate of glycolic acid at pH values