Integrated experimental and theoretical insights for Malachite Green Dye adsorption from wastewater using low cost adsorbent

Water pollution is one of the problems that threaten humanity, and to confront it with only experimental procedures is not enough. It is necessary to integrate both practical methods and theoretical calculations to achieve decontamination with the most accurate interpretation. Hence, discussing the experimental mechanism study of MG dye adsorption with the help of the application of DFT calculations is the main goal of this article herein. The experimental results affirmed that the preparation of γ-Al2O3 by precipitation method using (NH4)2CO3 improved the porosity, the surface capability, and the adsorbent capacities (qmax = 210 mg/g) at optimum condition compared with the previous studies. Kinetic and equilibrium studies referred that the adsorption follows the pseudo-second order model and Freundlich isotherm model, respectively. Also, the calculated and observed thermodynamic parameters exerted positive values of (ΔH°) and (ΔS°) which translates into endothermic process with increasing disorder of the system. Theoretical calculations at DFT- B3LYP/6-31G (d,P) level of theory were calculated to show the selectivity of using the cationic form of the Malachite Green (MG) in the experimental measurements to find interaction mechanism. The electronic structure and intramolecular charge transfer of (MG), its cationic form and the complex of MG-Al were investigated theoretically at the B3LYP/6-31 G (d,p) level of theory. The equilibrium geometries of (MG), its cationic form and the complex of MG-Al were determined, and it was found that these geometries are non-planar. The EHOMO and ELUMO energies can be used to calculate the global properties; chemical hardness (η), softness (S) and electronegativity (χ). The calculated nonlinear optical parameters (NLO) of the studied compounds; the electronic dipole moment (μ), first-order hyperpolarizability (β), the hyper-Rayleigh scattering (βHRS) and the depolarization ratio (DR)) showed promising optical properties. Finally, the computational and the experimental results indicated that the adsorption efficiency of MG from wastewater was directly associated with the dye electrophilicity power.

Anthocyanin Color Stabilization by Host-Guest Complexation with p-Sulfonatocalix[n]arenes

Flavylium-based compounds in their acidic and cationic form bring color to aqueous solutions, while under slightly acidic or neutral conditions they commonly bring discoloration. Selective host-guest complexation between water-soluble p-sulfonatocalix[n]arenes (SCn) macrocycles and the flavylium cationic species can increase the stability of the colored form, expanding its domain over the pH scale. The association constants between SCn and the cationic (acid) and neutral basic forms of flavylium-based compounds were determined through UV-Vis host-guest titrations at different pH values. The affinity of the hosts for synthetic chromophore was found to be higher than for a natural anthocyanin (Oenin). The higher affinity of SC4 for the synthetic flavylium was confirmed by 1H NMR showing a preferential interaction of the flavylium phenyl ring with the host cavity. In contrast with its synthetic counterpart, the flavylium substitution pattern in the anthocyanin seems to limit the inclusion of the guest in the host’s binding pocket. In this case, the higher affinity was observed for the octamer (SC8) likely due to its larger cavity and higher number of negatively charged sulfonate groups.

The Photochemistry of Fe2(S2C3H6)(CO)6(µ-CO) and Its Oxidized Form, Two Simple [FeFe]-Hydrogenase CO-Inhibited Models. A DFT and TDDFT Investigation

FeIFeI Fe2(S2C3H6)(CO)6(µ-CO) (1a–CO) and its FeIFeII cationic species (2a+–CO) are the simplest model of the CO-inhibited [FeFe] hydrogenase active site, which is known to undergo CO photolysis within a temperature-dependent process whose products and mechanism are still a matter of debate. Using density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) computations, the ground state and low-lying excited-state potential energy surfaces (PESs) of 1a–CO and 2a+–CO have been explored aimed at elucidating the dynamics of the CO photolysis yielding Fe2(S2C3H6)(CO)6 (1a) and [Fe2(S2C3H6)(CO)6]+ (2a+), two simple models of the catalytic site of the enzyme. Two main results came out from these investigations. First, a–CO and 2a+–CO are both bound with respect to any CO dissociation with the lowest free energy barriers around 10 kcal mol−1, suggesting that at least 2a+–CO may be synthesized. Second, focusing on the cationic form, we found at least two clear excited-state channels along the PESs of 2a+–CO that are unbound with respect to equatorial CO dissociation.

The Photochemistry of Fe2(S2C3H6)(CO)6(µ-CO) and its Oxidized Form, Two Simple [FeFe]-Hydrogenase CO-Inhibited Models. A DFT and TDDFT Investigation

FeIFeI Fe2(S2C3H6)(CO)6(µ-CO) (1a-CO) and its FeIFeII cationic species (2a+-CO) are the simplest model of the CO-inhibited [FeFe] hydrogenase active site, which is known to undergo CO photolysis within a temperature- dependent process whose products and mechanism are still a matter of debate. Using Density Functional Theory (DFT) and Time-Dependent Density Functional Theory (TDDFT) computations, the ground state and low-lying excited state potential energy surfaces (PESs) of 1a-CO and 2a+-CO have been explored aimed at elucidating the dynamics of the CO photolysis yielding Fe2(S2C3H6)(CO)6 (1a) and Fe2(S2C3H6)(CO)6+ (2a+), two simple models of the catalytic site of the enzyme. Two main results came out from these investigations. First, a-CO and 2a+-CO are both bound with respect to any CO dissociation with lowest free energy barriers around 10 kcal mol-1, suggesting that at least 2a+-CO might be synthetized. Second, focusing on the cationic form, we found at least two clear excited state channels along the PESs of 2a+-CO that are unbound with respect to equatorial CO dissociation.

Graphene Oxide-Controlled Neutral-Versus Cationic-Form of a Red Emitting Dye: Enhancement of Fluorescence by Graphene Oxide

Fluorescence enhancement of fluorophores in neat solvents media in the presence of graphene oxide (GO) is less known. It is necessary to re-examine the role of GO from fundamental scientifc...

Flavylium Dye as pH-Tunable Fluorescent and CD Probe for Double-Stranded DNA and RNA

The interaction of 4′-(N,N-dimethylamino)-6-hydroxyflavylium cation with double stranded (ds-) DNA/RNA was studied by UV/Vis spectrophotometry, circular dichroism (CD), and also steady-state and time-resolved emission spectroscopies at neutral and weakly acidic conditions. At pH 5, the studied molecule, in its flavylium cationic form, showed considerable binding affinities (5 < logKs < 6) for all ds-DNA/RNA, contrary to chalcones forms (dominant at pH 7), which did not show binding to polynucleotides. Flavylium cation intercalated into ds-DNAs at variance to dominant groove aggregation within ds-RNA, which was reported by RNA-specific bisignate induced CD spectrum (ICD) bands. The intrinsically negligible fluorescence of flavylium was strongly increased upon the addition of DNA or RNA, whereby both the fluorescence intensity and emission lifetimes of complexes differed considerably: the strongest emission increase was observed for AU-RNA (detection limit estimated to 10 nM) followed by AT-DNAs and the much weaker effect of GC-DNAs. Both fluorescence sensitivity on the ds-DNA/RNA secondary structure and sequence-selective ICD bands make the flavylium–chalcones system an intriguing pH-switchable new probe for distinguishing between various polynucleotide sequences.

Crystal structure and vibrational spectra of salts of 1H-pyrazole-1-carboxamidine and its protonation route

Crystal structures of five salts of 1H-pyrazole-1-carboxamidine, PyCA, with various inorganic acids were determined, (HPyCA)Cl, (HPyCA)Cl·H2O, (HPyCA)Br, (HPyCA)2(I)I3, and (HPyCA)HSO4. Theoretical calculations of the protonation route of PyCA showed that the cationic form present in the studied crystals is energetically privileged. Tautomeric equilibrium constants indicated two isomers as the most stable neutral forms. Calculations for two other tautomers failed resulting in pyrazole and carbodiimid tautomer of cyanamide. Such decomposition is important in a view of guanylation reaction. Hydrogen bonding patterns were studied by means of the graph-set approach. Similarities of the patterns in different crystal structures were demonstrated by the algebraic relations between descriptors of the patterns. The strength of hydrogen bonding network in the crystals was assessed analyzing vibrational spectra. The bands were assigned on the basis of theoretical calculations for the complex [(HPyCA)2Cl4]2– ion and potential energy distribution analysis. The strength of hydrogen bonds was set in the following ascending series (HPyCA)2(I)I3 (4) < (HPyCA)Br (3) < (HPyCA)Cl (1) < (HPyCA)Cl·H2O (2) < (HPyCA)HSO4 (5).

The Neutrally Charged Diarylurea Compound PQ401 Kills Antibiotic-Resistant and Antibiotic-Tolerant Staphylococcus aureus

ABSTRACT Resistance or tolerance to traditional antibiotics is a challenging issue in antimicrobial chemotherapy. Moreover, traditional bactericidal antibiotics kill only actively growing bacterial cells, whereas nongrowing metabolically inactive cells are tolerant to and therefore “persist” in the presence of legacy antibiotics. Here, we report that the diarylurea derivative PQ401, previously characterized as an inhibitor of the insulin-like growth factor I receptor, kills both antibiotic-resistant and nongrowing antibiotic-tolerant methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) by lipid bilayer disruption. PQ401 showed several beneficial properties as an antimicrobial lead compound, including rapid killing kinetics, low probability for resistance development, high selectivity to bacterial membranes compared to mammalian membranes, and synergism with gentamicin. In contrast to well-studied membrane-disrupting cationic antimicrobial low-molecular-weight compounds and peptides, molecular dynamic simulations supported by efficacy data demonstrate that the neutral form of PQ401 penetrates and subsequently embeds into bacterial lipid bilayers more effectively than the cationic form. Lastly, PQ401 showed efficacy in both the Caenorhabditis elegans and Galleria mellonella models of MRSA infection. These data suggest that PQ401 may be a lead candidate for repurposing as a membrane-active antimicrobial and has potential for further development as a human antibacterial therapeutic for difficult-to-treat infections caused by both drug-resistant and -tolerant S. aureus. IMPORTANCE Membrane-damaging antimicrobial agents have great potential to treat multidrug-resistant or multidrug-tolerant bacteria against which conventional antibiotics are not effective. However, their therapeutic applications are often hampered due to their low selectivity to bacterial over mammalian membranes or their potential for cross-resistance to a broad spectrum of cationic membrane-active antimicrobial agents. We discovered that the diarylurea derivative compound PQ401 has antimicrobial potency against multidrug-resistant and multidrug-tolerant Staphylococcus aureus. PQ401 selectively disrupts bacterial membrane lipid bilayers in comparison to mammalian membranes. Unlike cationic membrane-active antimicrobials, the neutral form of PQ401 rather than its cationic form exhibits maximum membrane activity. Overall, our results demonstrate that PQ401 could be a promising lead compound that overcomes the current limitations of membrane selectivity and cross-resistance. Also, this work provides deeper insight into the design and development of new noncharged membrane-targeting therapeutics to combat hard-to-cure bacterial infections.

Crystal structure and Hirshfeld surface analysis of 1-carboxy-2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)ethan-1-aminium bromide 2-ammonio-3-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)propanoate

In the title molecular salt, C9H12NO4+·Br−·C9H11NO4, one of the dopa molecules is in the cationic form in which the α-amino group is protonated and the α-carboxylic acid group is uncharged, while the second dopa molecule is in the zwitterion form. The Br−anion occupies a special position and is located on a twofold rotation axis. The two dopa molecules are interconnected by short O—H...O hydrogen bonds. In the crystal, the various units are linked by O—H...O, N—H...Br and N—H...O hydrogen bonds, forming a three-dimensional framework. The title compound was refined as an inversion twin with an absolute structure parameter of 0.023 (8).

Crystal structures of the two salts 2-methyl-1H-imidazol-3-ium nitrate–2-methyl-1H-imidazole (1/1) and 2-methyl-1H-imidazol-3-ium nitrate

The title salts, C4H7N2+·NO3−·C4H6N2, (I), and C4H7N2+·NO3−, (II), were obtained from solutions containing 2-methylimidazole and nitric acid in different concentrations. In the crystal structure of salt (I), one of the –NH H atoms of the imidazole ring shows half-occupancy, hence only every second molecule is in its cationic form. The nitrate anion in this structure lies on a twofold rotation axis. The neutral 2-methylimidazole molecule and the 2-methyl-1H-imidazol-3-ium cation interact through N—H...N hydrogen bonds to form [(C4H6N2)...(C4H7N2)+] pairs. These pairs are linked with two nitrate anions on both sides through bifurcated N—H...(O,O) hydrogen bonds into chains running parallel to [001]. In the crystal structure of salt (II), the C4H7N2+cation and the NO3−anion are both located on a mirror plane, leading to a statistical disorder of the methyl H atoms. The cations and anions again interact through bifurcated N—H...(O,O) hydrogen bonds, giving rise to the formation of chains consisting of alternating anions and cations parallel to [100].