NSF Award Abstract - #9984071

CAREER: Developing the Chemistry of Metallobisbenzimidazoles

Abstract

This CAREER award in the Inorganic, Bioinorganic and Organometallic Chemistry program supports research on the synthesis, characterization and examination of metallobisbenzimidazole (BBZ) complexes which are functional analogs of traditional tetrapyrrole systems, by Professor Michael Chan of the Department of Chemistry at Ohio State University. Metalloporphyrins and other metallotetrapyrroles are important cofactors in biology, and synthetic porphyrins and related phthalocyanines have found use for a variety of applications. The BBZ ligands are similar but possess differences which will be exploited for the design of new compounds. In particular, control of the degree of non-planarity of the benzimidazole ring will be used to enhance chiral recognition and catalysis. A number of complexes will be synthesized employing BBZ ligands in which the framework has been substituted with electron donating and withdrawing groups and a controlled degree of "ruffling" of the ring. Following synthesis and characterization, the chiral properties and selected catalytic activities of these compounds will be examined.

The goal of this research is to prepare metal complexes of bisbenzimidazoles, which are related to substances that have a number of biological functions. These compounds will be designed to emulate but alter the biological properties in order to be useful for a number of applications, including optical sensors and catalysts for the production of pharmaceuticals, commercial epoxides and related materials. An integrated graduate-upper division undergraduate course and an associated laboratory course on the structure and properties of macromolecules will be developed, and available computational facilities enhanced. This component of the educational plan will introduce the students to current concepts and methods in the structural study of proteins, including protein crystallography.