Electrophilic reactant, ultimate

Miller, E. C., Miller, J. A. Studies on the mechanism of activation of aromatic amine and amide carcinogens to ultimate carcinogenic electrophilic reactants. Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 163, 731 (1969). 

The ultimate electrophilic reactants of carcinogens can bind to all four bases of DNA as well as to the phosphodlester backbone... 

The results in table 2.6 show that the rates of reaction of compounds such as phenol and i-napthol are equal to the encounter rate. This observation is noteworthy because it shows that despite their potentially very high reactivity these compounds do not draw into reaction other electrophiles, and the nitronium ion remains solely effective. These particular instances illustrate an important general principle if by increasing the reactivity of the aromatic reactant in a substitution reaction, a plateau in rate constant for the reaction is achieved which can be identified as the rate constant for encounter of the reacting species, and if further structural modifications of the aromatic in the direction of further increasing its potential reactivity ultimately raise the rate constant above this plateau, then the incursion of a new electrophile must be admitted. 

There are, however, examples indicating that in ion molecule reactions between a protonated species (AH+) and benzene (B), two isomeric forms of the intermediate complex may exist (AH+)(B) and (A)(BH+) [74,286]. In the cases of water [287] and propene [74], quantum chemical calculations clearly indicate that the former corresponds to a n complex where A-H acts as a hydrogen bond donor towards the centre of the benzene ring, while the latter is a hydrogen bonded complex between the benzenium ion and A. In neither case has a barrier been located, but is probably rather low in both cases. The role of the n complex has still not been clarified, since direct downhill routes from the reactants to the a complex exist. It has been pointed out that n complex formation between a pro electrophile and the substrate may be important in solution and in biological systems for molecular recognition purposes. In such cases the proelectrophile is activated to form the actual electrophile subsequent to n complexation, thereupon giving rise to the a complex. This has been shown by quantum chemistry to provide a reasonable scenario for the reaction between HF and benzene, in which BF3 is ultimately required to promote ion formation of the HF/benzene tt complex [288]. 

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