Transition metals biological importance

Although the focus of this section has primarily been on iron and copper complexes, probably the most important transition metals biologically studied by the MCD technique, variable temperature and field dependence studies have also been carried out for complexes of other transition metals such as cobalt and manganese and the techniques described for iron and copper can easily be applied to other metals based on the nature of the ground state. MCD spectroscopy has the key advantage, over other techniques used to study bulk magnetic properties of an entire sample, that spectral bands associated with specific mefal cenfers can be sfudied in isolation. 

N-Acyl-a-amino acids are important compounds in both chemistry and biology. They are easily obtained in a transition metal-catalyzed, three-component domino reaction of an aldehyde, an amide, and CO. Whereas cobalt was mainly used for this process, Beller and coworkers [159] have recently shown that palladium has a... 

There are many variants of such syntheses of heterocycles. Recent examples are presented in Eqs. 9.58 and 9.59.90 Because these transformations do not require aromatic halides or transition metals, they may provide a clean technology for production of biologically important materials. 

We turn now to the transition metal atoms in three series of 10 elements and the building towards a set of 18 electrons in them which is preceded by two Groups, 1 and 2 (Figure 2.2). Many of them and the early elements of Groups 1 and 2 are of immense importance in both geological and biological metal ion chemistry. As the... 

Amino acid is one of the most important biological ligands. Researches on the coordination of metal-amino acid complexes will help us better understand the complicated behavior of the active site in a metal enzyme. Up to now many Ln-amino acid complexes [50] and 1 1 or 1 2 transition metal-amino acid complexes [51] with the structural motifs of mononuclear entity or chain have been synthesized. Recently, a series of polynuclear lanthanide clusters with amino acid as a ligand were reported (most of them display a Ln404-cubane structural motif) [52]. It is also well known that amino acids are useful ligands for the construction of polynuclear copper clusters [53-56], Several studies on polynuclear transition metal clusters with amino acids as ligands, such as [C03] [57,58], [Co2Pt2] [59], [Zn6] [60], and [Fe ] [61] were also reported. 

Metal complexes, especially involving transition metals, are known for their role as catalysts in a broad variety of chemical processes including isomerization, oxidization, hydrogenation, and polymerization. Such catalytic reactions play an important role not only in many industrial processes, such as petroleum and polymer industries, but also in many biological systems, e.g., a variety of selective oxidation catalysts with heme (1) and nonheme (2) iron centers. The transition metals in these systems usually constitute a fundamental part of the catalyst, due to their... 

Tables 1.2-1.6 list some of the important geometries assumed by metal ions in biological systems. Common geometries adopted by transition metal ions that will...

In addition to alkenes and alkynes, allenes have attracted considerable interest due to their unique reactivity and multireaction sites. Therefore, transition-metal-catalyzed nucleophilic addition reaction of amines and imines to allenes has been extensively studied to prepare biologically important amines and nitrogen-heterocycles.31,31d... 

The NO/NO+ and NO/NO- self-exchange rates are quite slow (42). Therefore, the kinetics of nitric oxide electron transfer reactions are strongly affected by transition metal complexes, particularly by those that are labile and redox active which can serve to promote these reactions. Although iron is the most important metal target for nitric oxide in mammalian biology, other metal centers might also react with NO. For example, both cobalt (in the form of cobalamin) (43,44) and copper (in the form of different types of copper proteins) (45) have been identified as potential NO targets. In addition, a substantial fraction of the bacterial nitrite reductases (which catalyze reduction of NO2 to NO) are copper enzymes (46). The interactions of NO with such metal centers continue to be rich for further exploration. 

The transition metal cross-couplings of allenes described here offer practical solutions for the modification of 1,2-dienes and access to the preparation of highly functionalized 1,3-dienes, alkynes and alkenes, which are often not easily accessible in a regio- and stereoselective manner by classical methods. Some of the prepared alkynes or functionalized allenes serve as important intermediates in syntheses of natural products, biologically active compounds, e.g. enynes and enyne-allenes, and new materials. It can be predicted that further synthetic efforts will surely be focused on new applications of allenes in transition metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions. 

During the last three decades, peroxo compounds of early transition metals (TMs) in their highest oxidation state, like TiIV, Vv, MoVI, WV1, and Revn, attracted much interest due to their activity in oxygen transfer processes which are important for many chemical and biological applications. Olefin epoxidation is of particular significance since epoxides are key starting compounds for a large variety of chemicals and polymers [1]. Yet, details of the mechanism of olefin epoxidation by TM peroxides are still under discussion. 

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