Henry Rzepa's Blog

Previously, I explored the unusual structure of a molecule with a hydrogen bonded interaction between a phenol and a pyridine. The crystal structure name was RAKQOJ and it had been reported as having almost symmetrical N…H…O hydrogen bonds. This feature had been determined using neutron diffraction crystallography, which is thought very reliable at determining proton positions. Another compound with these characteristics is 3-methyl-5-phenylpyrazole or MEPHPY01.[1] Here the neutron study showed it to apparently have the structure represented below, where the solid N-H lines indicate a proton equidistant between two nitrogens.

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References

1. F.H. Moore, A.H. White, and A.C. Willis, "3-Methyl-5-phenylpyrazole: a neutron diffraction study", Journal of the Chemical Society, Perkin Transactions 2, pp. 1068, 1975. http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/p29750001068

The previous examples of four atom systems displaying two layers of aromaticity illustrated how 4 (B₄), 8 (C₄) and 12 (N₄) valence electrons were partitioned into 4n+2 manifolds (respectively 2+2, 6+2 and 6+6). The triplet state molecule B₂C₂ with 6 electrons partitioned into 2π and 4σ electrons, with the latter following Baird’s aromaticity rule.[1],[2]. Now for the final missing entry; as a triplet C₂N₂ has 10 electrons, which now partition into 4 + 6. But would that be 4π + 6σ or 4σ + 6π? Well, in a way neither! Read on.

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References

1. N.C. Baird, "Quantum organic photochemistry. II. Resonance and aromaticity in the lowest 3.pi..pi.* state of cyclic hydrocarbons", Journal of the American Chemical Society, vol. 94, pp. 4941-4948, 1972. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/ja00769a025
2. M. Rosenberg, C. Dahlstrand, K. Kilså, and H. Ottosson, "Excited State Aromaticity and Antiaromaticity: Opportunities for Photophysical and Photochemical Rationalizations", Chemical Reviews, vol. 114, pp. 5379-5425, 2014. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/cr300471v

Normally, aromaticity is qualitatively assessed using an electron counting rule for cyclic conjugated rings. The best known is the Hückel 4n+2 rule (n=0,1, etc) for inferring diatropic aromatic ring currents in singlet-state π-conjugated cyclic molecules^‡ and a counter 4n rule which infers an antiaromatic paratropic ring current for the system. Some complex rings can sustain both types of ring currents in concentric rings or regions within the molecule, i.e. both diatropic and paratropic regions. Open shell (triplet state) molecules have their own rule; this time the molecule has a diatropic ring current if it follows a 4n rule, often called Baird’s rule. But has a molecule which simultaneously follows both Hückel’s AND Baird’s rule ever been suggested? Well, here is one, as indeed I promised in the previous post.

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I discussed in the previous post the small molecule C₄ and how of the sixteen valence electrons, eight were left over after forming C-C σ-bonds which partitioned into six σ and two π. So now to consider B₄. This has four electrons less, and now the partitioning is two σ and two π (CCSD(T)/Def2-TZVPPD calculation, FAIR DOI: 10.14469/hpc/10157). Again both these sets fit the Hückel 4n+2 rule (n=0).
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The title comes from the abstract of an article[1] analysing why Biotin (vitamin B7) is such a strong and effective binder to proteins, with a free energy of (non-covalent) binding approaching 21 kcal/mol. The author argues that an accumulation of both CH-π and CH-O together with more classical hydrogen bonds and augmented by a sulfur centered hydrogen bond, oxyanion holes and water solvation, accounts for this large binding energy.

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References

1. D.B. McConnell, "Biotin’s Lessons in Drug Design", Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, vol. 64, pp. 16319-16327, 2021. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.jmedchem.1c00975