Photorelease of nitric oxide in water-soluble diruthenium nitrosyl complexes with phosphonate substituted pyridylpyrrole

The diethylphosphonate ligand HL 1 substituted pyridylpyrrole was synthesized by treatment of 2-bromo-6-(1H'-pyrrol-2-yl)pyridine and diethylphosphite in presence of base triethylamine and catalyst Pd(PPh 3 ) 4 under refluxing toluene conditions. The HL 1 ligand was treated with bromotrimethylsilane and followed hydrolysis by methanol to afford diphosphonic acid ligand H 3 L 2 . Treatment of H 3 L 2 with [Ru(NO)Cl 3 ] in presence of triethylamine in refluxing thf was generated diruthenium nitrosyl complex [Ru(L 2 )(NO)(Cl)] 2 ·(Et 3 NH) 2 ([ 1 ]·(Et 3 NH) 2 ), which is water soluble. The ligands and metal complex were fully characterized by NMR, IR, ESI-MS and single crystal X-ray diffraction technology. The solid state structure analysis displays 1 2- is dinuclear species, of which two ruthenium atoms are linked by two PO 3 2- groups. Photorelease of nitric oxide from 1 2- was monitored by UV-Vis spectra and the amount of the NO was determined by Griess reaction and DPPH radical scavenging reaction.