Biological chemistry of the carbon–sulfur bond

Abstract

Carbon–sulfur biological chemistry encompasses a fascinating area of biochemistry and medicinal chemistry and includes the roles that methionine and S-adenosyl-l-methionine play in cells as well as the chemistry of intracellular thiols such as glutathione. This article, based on the 2014 Bernard Belleau Award lecture, provides an overview of some of the key investigations that were undertaken in this area from a bioorganic perspective. The research has ameliorated our fundamental knowledge of several of the enzymes utilizing these sulfur-containing molecules, has led to the development of several novel 19F biophysical probes, and has explored some of the medicinal chemistry associated with these processes.

X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy of Aliphatic Organic Sulfides

“…Organic sulfides, sometimes called thioethers, are one of the major categories of organic sulfur compounds. They play various roles in nature, from diverse roles in biology through the sulfur-containing amino acid methionine to an essential global environmental role through dimethylsulfide regulation of cloud cover over large oceans. , Sulfur is an abundant element in fossil fuels, accounting for up to 8% by weight, a weight abundance that is greater than hydrogen and second only to carbon. Most of the sulfur in crude oils probably had its origins in the action of sulfate-reducing bacteria on sulfates, generating inorganic sulfide, , which then became incorporated into kerogens, forming the geological base of crude oils.…”

“…Organic sulfides, sometimes called thioethers, are one of the major categories of organic sulfur compounds. They play various roles in nature, from diverse roles in biology through the sulfur-containing amino acid methionine 1 to an essential global environmental role through dimethylsulfide regulation of cloud cover over large oceans. 2,3 Sulfur is an abundant element in fossil fuels, accounting for up to 8% by weight, 4 a weight abundance that is greater than hydrogen and second only to carbon.…”