This thesis investigates the structure and thermal behaviour of LiBH4, NaBH4, KBH4, LiK(BH4)2, Ca(BH4)2 and Sr(BH4)2. LiK(BH4)2 is the first mixed alkali metal borohydride and was synthesised and characterised during this work. The crystal structures of these borohydrides were studied using variable temperature neutron and synchrotron X-ray diffraction. The synthesis of isotopically enriched samples of 7Li11BD4, Li11BD4, Na11BD4 and K11BD4 allowed high quality neutron diffraction data to be collected. Particular attention was paid to the exact geometry of the borohydride ions which were generally found to be perfect tetrahedra but with orientational disorder. New structures of Ca(BH4)2 were identified and the first crystal structure of Sr(BH4)2 was determined from synchrotron X-ray diffraction data. Solid state 11B NMR and Raman spectroscopy provided further information about the structure of these borohydrides. The thermal behaviour of the borohydrides was investigated using thermogravimetric analysis with mass spectrometry of the decomposition gas products. Hydrogen is the main decomposition gas product from all of these compounds but small amounts of B2H6 and BH3 were also detected during decomposition. Thermogravimetic analyses of Na11BD4 and K11BD4 were completed whilst collecting in-situ neutron diffraction data allowing information about structural changes and mass losses to be combined in order to better understand the decomposition process.

The outcome of chemical reactions proceeding via radical pair (RP) intermediates can be influenced by the magnitude and direction of applied magnetic fields, even for interaction strengths far smaller than the thermal energy. Sensitivity to Earth-strength magnetic fields has been suggested as a biophysical mechanism of animal magnetoreception and this thesis is concerned with simulations of the effects of such weak magnetic fields on RP reaction yields. State-space restriction techniques previously used in the simulation of NMR spectra are here applied to RPs. Methods for improving the efficiency of Liouville-space spin dynamics calculations are presented along with a procedure to form operators directly into a reduced state-space. These are implemented in the spin dynamics software Spinach. Entanglement is shown to be a crucial ingredient for the observation of a low field effect on RP reaction yields in some cases. It is also observed that many chemically plausible initial states possess an inherent directionality which may be a useful source of anisotropy in RP reactions. The nature of the radical species involved in magnetoreception is investigated theoretically. It has been shown that European Robins are disorientated by weak radio-frequency (RF) fields at the frequency corresponding to the Zeeman splitting of a free electron. The potential role of superoxide and dioxygen is investigated and the anisotropic reaction yield in the presence of a RF-field, without a static field, is calculated. Magnetic field effect data for Escherichia coli photolyase and Arabidopsis thaliana cryptochrome 1, both expected to be magnetically sensitive, are satisfactorily modelled only when singlet-triplet dephasing is included. With a view to increasing the reaction yield anisotropy of a RP magnetoreceptor, a brief study of the amplification of the magnetic field experienced by a RP from nearby magnetite particles is presented. Finally in a digression from RPs, Spinach is used to determine the states expected to be immune from relaxation and therefore long-lived in NMR experiments on multi-spin systems.

Allergic reactions are mainly mediated by the interactions between the IgE and its ligands, amongst them CD23 and CD21 in what is termed the IgE network. CD23 is involved in upregulating IgE expression by forming a trimolecular complex with CD21 and IgE on the B-cell surface, resulting in the specific activation of IgE-positive B cells. CD21 also interacts with C3d and is a bridge between the innate and the immune system. A crystal structure of the interaction has been solved (Szakonyi et al., 2001) but was controversial because it contradicted previous biochemical analyses. The aims of this thesis were to use various biophysical techniques to study the interactions between the molecules in the IgE network and its possible inhibition. Part 1: Characterisation of a phage display-derived peptide that inhibit IgE binding to CD23 A peptide was previously derived using phage display technology and tested for binding ability to CD23 using SPR and ITC. Subsequent NMR experiments were performed to identify the binding site, followed by characterization of its derivatives. Crystallisation of CD23 with the peptide and soaking with its truncated tripeptide, NWP, were also attempted. Part 2: Characterisation of CD23 and its interaction with its ligands X-ray crystallography was undertaken to solve the structure of derCD23 in complex with a phage display-derived peptide (Part1) followed by crystal soaking with a truncated tripeptide, NWP. However, a reproducible, high-resolution wild type derCD23 structure was determined at 1.9 Å. A comparison of the binding behaviour between the monomeric derCD23 and a trimeric CD23 construct was carried out in order to see the effect of oligomerisation upon IgE binding. Using the known interaction map as well as a crystal structure, the possible interacting residues between CD23 and IgE were examined. The characterisation of the CD23/CD21 interaction was continued from previous efforts in order to confirm that the binding epitope of CD23 for CD21 lies within the C-terminus of CD23. Characterisation of the interactions of CD23/IgE/FcεRI was performed to examine these multimolecular interactions and possible regulatory mechanisms in mast cell degranulation. It was shown that CD23 can form multimeric complexes with IgE-Fc that bind to FcεRI with higher apparent affinity than IgE-Fc alone, which may lead to increases in mast cell degranulation. It was also found that the IgE bound on FcεRI still binds to CD23 although with a lower binding capacity, presumably due allosteric changes. The binding of CD23 with a monoclonal antibody IDEC-152 was also characterised using SPR and NMR spectroscopy. It was proposed that IDEC-152 might interfere with the trimerisation site of CD23 thus reducing its affinity for IgE. A thermofluor assay was developed and optimised for potential screening of compounds that bind to derCD23 using a qPCR machine, which may be useful to screen compounds that bind to CD23 as part of future drug discovery project. Crystallisation of the derCD23/CD21 and IgE/triCD23/CD21 complexes was also attempted as part of ongoing crystallisation projects. Part 3: The interaction between C3d and CD21 The interaction between C3d and CD21 is believed to be a bridge between the innate and adaptive immune response, and is thought to be pivotal in the initiation of autoimmune disease. Following from previous studies on this interaction, further characterisations were performed using NMR and ITC to confirm the involved sites on CD21 (SCR1-2) in binding to C3d. Several potential salt bridges have been identified so far, allowing a high-resolution docked structure of the C3d/CD21 complex.

Nucleophilic substitution reactions of alkylamines, cyclic alkylamines, and hydroxyalkylamines with 5-substituted-1,4-naphthoquinones have been studied. It has been found that the nature of the solvent employed in the reaction influences the position of mono-substitution at either the 2- or 3-position. Although both regioisomers were produced in all the reactions, protic polar solvents favoured the formation of the 3-regioisomer, whereas non-protic solvents favoured the formation of the 2-regioisomer. It has also been found that formation of 2,3-diaminoalkyl derivatives is normally unlikely. A series of hydroxyalkylamino-1,4-naphthoquinones were also synthesised. The collision-induced dissociation mass spectra of protonated hydroxyalkylamino-1,4- naphthoquinones showed fragmentation patterns which were dependent on the nature and length of the side chain and the presence and nature of the adjacent group on the 3-position on the 1,4-naphthoquinone ring. A total of 27 novel compounds were synthesised during the course of this research, the structures of which were confirmed via 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry (ESI), IR spectroscopy and high resolution mass spectrometry (HRESIMS and HREIMS).

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is a popular spectroscopic method and has widespread use in many fields. Recent developments in solid-state NMR have increased interest in experiment and, alongside simultaneous developments in computational theory, have led to the field dubbed 'NMR crystallography.' This is a suite of methodologies, complementing the capabilities of other crystallographic methods in the determination of atomic structure, especially when large crystals cannot be made and when exploring materials with phenomena such as compositional, positional and dynamic disorder. NMR J-coupling is the indirect coupling between nuclear spins, which, when measured, can reveal a wealth of information about structure and bonding. This thesis develops and applies the method of Joyce for the prediction of NMR J-coupling in condensed matter systems using plane-wave pseudopotential density-functional theory, an important requirement for efficient treatment of finite and infinite periodic systems. It describes the first-ever method for the use of ultrasoft pseudopotentials and inclusion of special relativistic effects in J-coupling prediction, allowing for the treatment of a wider range of materials systems and overall greater user friendliness, thus making the method more accessible and attractive to the wider scientific community.

This thesis describes the reactivity of Zintl ions of groups 14 [E₉]^4– (E = Ge and Sn)and 15 [E'₇]^3– (E' = P and As) towards a number or transition, post-transition and main group reagents. The synthesis and characterisation of the resulting novel cluster anions is described herein. Coordination compounds of group 14 Zintl ions were synthesised when K₄Ge₉ was reacted with Zn[N(SiMe₃)₂]₂ to give the simple coordination compound [Ge₉ZnN(SiMe₃)₂]^3–. The heavier analogue K₄Sn₉ reacts with the same metal precursor to give the paramagnetic species [Sn₉ZnNSiMe₃]^3– where a trimethylsilyl group has been lost. K₄Ge₉ reacts with [Ru(COD)(η³-CH₂C(CH₃)CH₂)₂] to form the paramagnetic endohedral compound [Ru@Ge₁₂]^3– and with [Co(PEt₂Ph)₂(mes)₂] to form the prolate endohedral compound [Co₂@Ge₁₆]^4–, which has two metal centres encapsulated inside the sixteen atom germanium cage. Regarding group 15 Zintl ion reactivity, the reactions between pyridine solutions of [HP₇]^2– and E[N(SiMe₃)₂]₂ (E = Ge, Sn and Pb) have been found to yield coordination compounds of the type [P7E(N(SiMe3)2]2–. The germanium containing species [P₇GeN(SiMe₃)₂]^2– quickly decomposes at room temperature to give rise to the thermodynamic product [(P₇)₂Ge₂N(SiMe₃)₂]^3–, a process that involves the loss of an amide moiety. Activation products were also synthesised from the reaction of [E'₇]^3– with varying stoichiometries of VCp₂. The reaction with 0.7 equivalents of VCp₂ yields the sandwich complexes [CpV(η⁵-E'₅)]^n– (E' = P: n = 1; E' = As, n = 1 and 2) whereas with 2.5 equivalents the products are the triple-decker sandwich complexes [(CpV)₂(η^x-E'_x)]– (E' = P: x = 6; E' = As: x = 5).

Study of thermoresponsive porphyrins and their supramolecular complexes Abstract: We studied the water-soluble artificial compound meso-tetrakis{3,4,5-tris[2-(2-(2- methoxyethoxy)ethoxy)ethoxy]phenyl}porphyrin prepared at NIMS, Japan, using the high-resolution NMR spectroscopy experimental method. We observed its LCST-type phase separation and applied the Flory-Huggins theory of polymer solutions in order to find its phase diagram (binodal and spinodal curves of the phase separation) and we also obtained molar enthalpies, entropies and critical temperatures of its phase separation; from the Flory-Huggins theory we discovered that its molecules form dimers in aqueous solutions. We also studied its host-guest interactions with the S-camphorsulfonic acid; we learned that the porphyrin binds cations and the porphyrin dimers break down when dissolved cations are available for complexation. We observed no phase separation in chloroform. We obtained no proof of the existence of molecular stacks larger than dimers. 1

Hydrogen bonds are directional, non-covalent interactions between hydrogen and electronegative atoms. Although generally weak, these interactions are critical to the stability of many biological systems including proteins and DNA. This dissertation explores small molecules in which an intramolecular hydrogen bond is the key determinant of conformation. Chapter 1 introduces the protein Grb2 SH3C, details its role in cancer signalling, and delineates the idea of peptidomimetics—small molecules which are functionalized to mimic the structure of a peptide and disrupt protein-protein interactions. Chapter 2 describes a virtual screen for binders to Grb2 SH3C. From a library of 6.3 million compounds, 34 were tested in vitro and two found to bind to the protein in two orthogonal assays. Chapter 3 describes mimics of the polyproline II helix using a benzoylurea scaffold. A small library of these compounds was synthesized and tested for binding to Grb2 SH3C using SPR, a competition assay, and NMR. Chapter 4 describes attempts to mimic a 310 helix using benzamide-based peptidomimetics. The synthesis and in vitro evaluation of these molecules as ligands of Grb2 SH3C is described. Chapter 5 uses quantum chemical calculations to assess the energies of a series of molecular switches. These calculations benchmark a range of modern density functional theory calculations, and attempt to quantify the accuracy of these methods for a large, flexible system. The role of solvation, entropy, geometry, and torsional angles are assessed in accurately calculating the energies of the critical hydrogen bonds.

L'objectif de ce travail était de tester des méthodes de SAS pour la séparation des spectres complexes RMN de mélanges dans les plus simples des composés purs. Dans une première partie, les méthodes à savoir JADE et NNSC ont été appliqué es dans le cadre de la DOSY , une application aux données CPMG était démontrée. Dans une deuxième partie, on s'est concentré sur le développement d'un algorithme efficace "beta-SNMF" . Ceci s'est montré plus performant que NNSC pour beta inférieure ou égale à 2. Etant donné que dans la littérature, le choix de beta a été adapté aux hypothèses statistiques sur le bruit additif, une étude statistique du bruit RMN de la DOSY a été faite pour obtenir une image plus complète de nos données RMN étudiées. / The objective of the work was to test BSS methods for the separation of the complex NMR spectra of mixtures into the simpler ones of the pure compounds. In a first part, known methods namely JADE and NNSC were applied in conjunction for DOSY , performing applications for CPMG were demonstrated. In a second part, we focused on developing an effective algorithm "beta- SNMF ". This was demonstrated to outperform NNSC for beta less or equal to 2. Since in the literature, the choice of beta has been adapted to the statistical assumptions on the additive noise, a statistical study of NMR DOSY noise was done to get a more complete picture about our studied NMR data.

Depuis sa découverte dans les années 50, la DNP suscite un intérêt croissant en résonance magnétique. La DNP peut être définie comme le transfert d'aimantation entre des électrons célibataires et les noyaux de l'échantillon induit par irradiation micro-onde. Depuis sa renaissance à hauts champs dans les années 90, grâce à l'introduction des gyrotrons comme source micro-onde haute fréquence haute puissance, la plupart des développements et applications de la méthode concernent des échantillons d'intérêt biologique en solution solide. L'intérêt de notre groupe pour la caractérisation d'espèces de surface, tels que les catalyseurs supportés sur silice nous a conduit à appliquer la DNP à des espèces de surface. Le but de cette thèse est le développement de cette méthode nommée DNP SENS. Pour cela de nouveaux agents de polarisations sont tout d'abord introduits, avec une discussion sur l'influence des temps de relaxation électroniques sur l'efficacité DNP. L'optimisation de la préparation des échantillons pour maximiser la sensibilité RMN est discutée, ainsi que l'interaction entre les radicaux et la surface. Ces développements ont permis la caractérisation de nombreux matériaux et quelques exemples sont donnés ici. Enfin, une dernière partie se concentre sur l'application de la DNP à des conducteurs de polarisation, et montre la possibilité d'hyperpolarisés des objets de taille micrométrique. / Since its discovery in the 1950's, DNP has been a topic of significant interest in magnetic resonance. DNP is the transfer of polarization between single electrons and nuclei, driven by micro-wave irradiation. Since its renaissance at high field in the 90's, due to the introduction of gyrotrons as high-power, high-frequency microwave sources most application of this technique have been samples of biological interest in frozen solution. The long standing interest of our group in the characterization of surface species such as supported catalysts on silica lead us to apply this technique to the study of surfaces. The goal of this thesis is the development of this method, dubbed DNP Surface Enhanced NMR Spectroscopy. To that end, we first introduce new polarizing agents, soluble in organic solvents. The influence of the electron relaxation times on the DNP enhancements is demonstrated and efficient tailored polarizing agents are introduced. The optimization of the sample preparation to obtain optimal sensitivity is also discussed, as well as the interaction between the radical and the surface. These developments made it possible to apply the technique to many functionalized materials, with some examples developed in this manuscript. Finally, the issue of DNP on polarization conductors is discussed, and we show how microcrystals can be efficiently polarized using DNP.