Bioinorganic chemistry

Model compounds for the active site of hydroxylamine oxidoreductase

The design of water-soluble, amine and imine macrocyclic ligands is a bioinorganic approach to synthesize simple inorganic analogues to the active site P-460 of Hydroxylamine Oxidoreductase (HAO). This enzyme HAO catalyzes the four-electron oxidative conversion of hydroxylamine to nitrite in the biological nitrogen cycle. The exploration of the complexes’ reactivity towards substrates such as NH₂OH, N₂H₄, N₂O, and NO is envisioned. The ultimate goal of this research is to broaden our understanding of the interplay of the active site, covalently bound and potentially redox-active side-chains, metal-metal interactions, and electron acceptors during the course of the hydroxylamine oxidation.