Glutathione zinc complexes

The interaction of nine nucleobases (thymine, uracil, dihydrouracil, cytosine, adenine, guanine, diaminopurine, xanthine, hypoxanthine), in their deprotonated form, with zinc and with themselves in [Zn(nucleobase)(Tpph Me)] has been investigated. Selected compounds have been characterized by single-crystal X-ray study.158 Gelinski et al. reported the synthesis and characterization of two zinc complexes containing the ligand Tpph,Me and glutathione derivatives (Fig. 3.28).159... 

Ions of several metals such as zinc, cadmium, lead, nickel, and mercury form very stable complexes with glutathione, disturb the interconversion of oxidised reduced glutathione, which results in a lowering of the level of available antioxidants in cells (Christie and Costa, 1984). 

Fuhr, B.J., Rabenstein, D.L., 1973. Nuclear magnetic resonance studies of the solution chemistry of metal complexes. IX. The binding of cadmium, zinc, lead and mercury by glutathione. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 95, 6944-6950. 

A study by Alexander et al. (1981) demonstrated that zinc is excreted in the bile of rats. Analysis of the bile indicated that the zinc is primarily complexed with reduced glutathione. Treatment of these rats with diethylmaleate, which conjugates with reduced glutathione and restricts its availability, depressed the biliary excretion of zinc. This depression confirms a relationship between zinc and glutathione and suggests that zinc is transferred from liver to bile by a glutathione-dependent process. 

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