Title: Homologous ferrocene phosphines Author: Bc. Petr Vosáhlo Department: Department of Inorganic Chemistry Supervisor: prof. RNDr. Petr Štěpnička, Ph.D., DSc. Abstract: This thesis describes the synthesis and coordination behaviour of ferrocene diphosphines derived from 1,1'-bis(diphenylphosphino)ferrocene (dppf). Dppf is one of the most succesful ferrocene ligands, which can be used in various metal-catalyzed reactions. This study aimed to prepare analogous ligands with one dialkylphosphino substituent and one (diphenylphosphino)methyl group. These ligands were oxidized by KSeCN to afford the corresponding phosphinoselenides. The phosphinoselenides were used to assess sigma-donor abilities by measuring the coupling constant 1 JSeP via 31 P NMR spectroscopy. Lastly, the coordination behaviour of these ligands in palladium complexes was studied. The homologous ligands usually formed a mixtures containing a chelate complex and dimeric species with trans- coordinated ligands. Key words: ferrocene, phosphines, homologous ligands, palladium(II) complexes, structure elucidation.

Toxic singlet oxygen can be populated by the quenching of triplet states of chlorophyll (Chl). In photosynthetic light-harvesting complexes (LHCs), the gen- eration of singlet oxygen is prevented by a photoprotective mechanism based on an energy transfer from Chl triplets to carotenoids, which occurs via a Dexter mechanism (DET). The temperature dependence of the DET was studied in three selected LHCs by means of transient absorption spectroscopy. The emphasis was on a chlorophyll a-chlorophyll c2-peridinin-protein complex (acpPC) of Dinoflagel- late Amphidinium carterae. The results obtained from acpPC were compared with those for LHC-II from pea and chlorosomes of Chloroflexus aurantiacus. All three antennas exhibit high efficiency and fast rate of chlorophyll triplet quenching by carotenoids at room temperature, which prevents the accumulation of Chl triplets. The fast rate of quenching persists at low temperatures (≥77 K) in the case of LHC-II. However, the efficiency of the Chl triplets quenching is lower as proved by a detection of long-lived Chl triplets with a millisecond lifetime. These triplets were assigned to peripheral Chls that are not neighbouring with carotenoids active at 77 K. A similar population of long-lived Chl triplets was detected in the acpPC complex. In acpPC, the rate of the...

The presented diploma thesis is focused on finding conditions suitable for the study of surface reactions, especially Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reaction (SMCR), by the surface- enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) method. The first part of the work deals with the optimization of the conditions of individual reactions using the classical synthetic Schlenk technique. Traditional, published, conditions for SMCR were gradually modified during the work so that the reactions could be performed in aqueous media and at room temperature, i.e., under conditions suitable for SERS spectroscopy. The following catalysts were tested: (i) PEPPSI - the traditional SMCR catalyst; (ii) palladium ions; (iii) Pd colloids; (iv) bimetallic colloids of Pd and plasmonic metal (Ag, Au) in the form of core-shell and alloy; (v) Ag and Au colloids with additions of palladium salt or N- heterocyclic carbenes (NHC-catalysts). Two groups of substrates were used: substrates with functional groups with high affinity for the surfaces of metal nanoparticles (NPs) and substrates without these anchoring functional groups. Substrates without the anchoring functional groups can be expected to enter the SMCR reaction from solution. In the second part of this diploma thesis selected reaction mixtures for SMCR were performed in septum...

This thesis focuses on the study of UV light-generated zinc complexes with cadmium and organic molecules SAM, SAH, CYS, HCYS and GSSG, specifically at 375 nm. Furthemore, the aim of the work is to characterize the precursors spectrally and temporally before and after irradiation in the transilluminator at 250 nm. Study of genesis these complexes was performed by FLIM. Thanks to this method, it was found that the formation of complexes occurs only with Zn:SAH, Zn:GSSG and Zn:Cd. The formation of complexes is influenced by the method of preparation. The spectral characteristic was performed on a fluorimeter where the increase in fluorescence intensity of the irradiated solution with the precursors was expected. These were turbid solutions where sedimentation of the particles was observed and the intensity of fluorescence was changed. In the Zn:SAM and Zn:CYS sample, the sedimentation increased in intensity, while in Zn:SAH and Zn:HCYS decreased. The Zn:Cd precursor solution was clear and there was no change in intensity. Zn:Cd showed the best spectral properties, while the Zn:SAM sample, whose excitation and emission maxima are very close to each other, appeared to be the worst. A sample with Zn:CYS and Zn:HCYS showed almost the same spectra and respective peak results. Based on lifetime characteristics by TCSPC, the sample with Zn:CYS, Zn:HCYS and Zn:GSSG, which showed 3 lifetimes, was best treated. Lifetime could not be unambiguously determined for SAM and SAH samples. Zn:Cd had 4 lifetimes

The aim of this diploma thesis was the study of relation between chemical and thermal stability of complexes of humic acids with heavy metals, namely nickel, cobalt and copper. Complexes were prepared with metal solutions of three different initial concentrations. Through UV-VIS spectrophotometry were determined adsorbed amounts of incorporated metal ions in the structure of humic acid; it was affirmed that amount of bounded metal ions increases with increasing initial concentration. Chemical stability was determined as an amount of released metal ions, two of extraction agents were used (solution of MgCl2 and HCl), total bounded amount was distribute into three different fractions; residual fraction, strongly bound fraction and mobile and ion-exchangeable fraction. Changes that occured in the structure of humic acids after complexation and extraction were investigated by FT-IR spectrometry. Thermo-oxidative stability was tested through thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry. The results of this diploma thesis has showed comparision of complexes of two different humic acids. They have confirmed an impact of each metal ion on thermo-oxidative stability of humic acids. The relation between chemical and thermal stability was compared through correlation of data obtained by these methods.

Chlorophyll molecules in their triplet excited state can react with the ground state oxygen, producing oxygen in a singlet excited state, which is very reactive and thus very harmful to the light-harvesting complex. Photosynthetic organisms employ carotenoids to prevent the damage by quenching both excited (singlet) states of oxygen and excited triplet states of chlorophyll. In this work, we use ns transient absorption spectroscopy and global analysis to study the dynamics of carotenoid and chlorophyll triplet states in two light-harvesting complexes of Amphidinium carterae, the Peridinin-Chlorophyll a-Protein complex (PCP) and the main light-harvesting complex (LHCP). It appears that at room temperature all triplets are transferred from chlorophylls to carotenoids within ~ 5 ns, providing a very efficient protection against formation of singlet oxygen. One carotenoid triplet with a lifetime of ~ 10.2 µs participating in the chlorophyll triplet quenching was observed in the PCP sample, while results from LHCP suggest that two carotenoid triplets with a similar lifetime of ~ 2.5 µs contribute to quenching of chlorophyll triplet states. The two carotenoid triplets are attributed to peridinin placed in a polar environment and peridinin placed in a non-polar environment in the LHCP complex.

In this Thesis, structure and dynamics of paramagnetic complexes for medical application are studied by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR). It focuses mainly on development of contrast agents (CA) for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) which is one of the most effective radiodiagnostic method nowadays. Most of the MRI CAs contains paramagnetic complexes of d- and f-metal ions. The presence of unpaired electron in proximity of NMR active nuclei has two main effects: paramagnetically induced shift and paramagnetically induced relaxa- tion. Both processes can dramatically change the NMR spectrum and often make it unobservable at all. Nevertheless, in many cases, acquisition of such spectra is possible and sometimes even less time-consuming than observation of diamag- netic molecules. Enhanced T1 relaxation allows faster pulse sequence repetition and increased chemical shift dispersion may lead to resolution of originally over- lapped signals. Moreover, the analysis of paramagnetic effects can provide useful information about the structure and dynamics of the studied system. Theoretical background of these effects is described in the Introduction of the Thesis. In the first part of Discussion in the Thesis, a new class of contrast agents for 19F-MRI based on nickel(II) and cobalt(II/III) ions is introduced...

Cellular and tissue characteristics are results of dynamic regulation of gene expression. DNA wrapped into proteins, referred to as chromatin, requires involvement of mechanisms guiding accessibility of specific sequences. In higher organisms, chromatin remodeling proteins are indispensable in regulating chromatin structure including ISWI ATPase SMARCA5. SMARCA5 is involved in almost any transaction on DNA including transcription, however precise in vivo role of SMARCA5 in these processes remains unknown. To advance understanding of specific role of SMARCA5 in the development of chromatin structure during transcription we devised cellular model in which SMARAC5 level is manipulated while chromatin structure development and transcriptional response are monitored. Our data indicate that the transfected DNA template that is transcribed is enriched with histone H3 and its specific methylation of Histone H3 lysine (K) 4, a mark of active chromatin structure. Overexpression of SMARCA5 results within the reporter gene coding sequence in ~2,5-3 fold increase of both H3 occupancy an its modification H3K4Me3. Increased DNA template commitment into chromatinization is associated with repression of reporter gene expression. These results are supported by studies indicating dynamic development of nucleosomal...

Lanthanides have several specific properties which cannot be found for other elements in the periodic table. Among various applications of lanthanides, complexes of LnIII ions are used in medicine, e.g., as contrast agents in MRI, as luminescent probes or as radiopharmaceuticals, where their specific properties are important. These complexes must be kinetically inert to prevent release of highly toxic "free" LnIII ions. This requirement is fulfilled with pre-organized ligands such as analogues of H4dota (1,4,7,10- tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid). Many of important properties of LnIII complexes of H4dota, such as relaxivity, isomerism and fluxionality, depend on the solution dynamics of the complexes. However, the knowledge of this solution dynamics is limited for LnIII complexes of H4dota derivatives with phosphonate or phosphinate pendant arms. Recently, a new dynamical process where phosphonate oxygen atoms interchange through a bidentate phosphonate intermediate ("a phosphonate rotation") has been proposed by DFT calculations but unconfirmed experimentally. To prove the process experimentally, solution dynamics of LnIII complexes of monophosphonate and monophosphinate derivatives of H4dota was investigated. Especially, to examine the "P-rotation", 17 O NMR spectroscopy was used...

Studies of Lanthanide Complexes by a Combination of Spectroscopic Methods Monika Krupová (Department of Physical and Macromoecular Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague) Since conventional structural analysis offers rather limited means for the chirality detection, a series of lanthanide tris-(β-diketonates) are investigated as effective receptors for a better chirality sensing in biomolecular substrates. These lanthanide complexes containing β-diketonate ligands are electrically neutral; they can further coordinate with various small organic molecules such as chiral alcohols, amino alcohols or amino acids in organic solvents and produce a strong chiral signal. Previously, a resonance in Raman scattering was observed in the studied systems due to the correspondence of europium electronic transition energy to the laser excitation wavelength, about a 100-fold signal enhancement if compared to non-resonant vibrational ROA was observed. This enabled shorter detection times as well as lower sample concentrations. In the current work, interaction of the Eu(FOD) complex with (R)- and (S)- enantiomer of 1-phenylethanol in n-hexane was studied using IR spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy and Raman optical activity (ROA), UV-Vis spectroscopy and ultraviolet circular dichroism (UVCD). Only...