IChO 2000 · Theory problem 3

Bioinorganic Chemistry

The square planar complex cis-diammine dichloroplatinum(II) is an important drug for the treatment of certain cancers.

3.1 Draw the structures of cis- and trans-diammine dichloroplatinum(II) and label each structure as cis or trans.

A number of ionic compounds also have the empirical formula \(\ce{Pt(NH3)2Cl2}\).

3.2 Write molecular formulas for all possible ionic compounds which comply with the following conditions: each compound has

1) empirical formula \(\ce{Pt(NH3)2Cl2}\), 2) an anion and a cation and is composed of discrete, monomeric square planar platinum(II) complex, 3) only one type of cation and one type of anion. The answer must clearly reveal the composition of each discrete platinum(II) complex entity in each compound

3.3 How many \(5d\) electrons are there in the platinum(II) ion?

The valence d-orbital energy splitting diagram for a square planar complex can be regarded as being derived from that for an octahedral complex in which the metal-ligand interactions due to the two ligands coordinated along the \(z\) axis vanish, while the bonds to the four remaining ligands (coordinated along the \(x\) and \(y\) axes) become stronger.

3.4 Which of the five \(5d\) orbitals attain the highest energy (i. e. is the least likely to be occupied by electrons) in the general case of a square-planar \(\ce{Pt(II)}\) complex?

Serum transferrin (abbreviated: Tf) is a monomeric protein whose main function in the human body is the transport of iron(III). Each transferrin molecule can bind up to two iron(III) ions with stepwise binding constants \(K_1\) and \(K_2\) at biological conditions except that the temperature is \(25\,^\circ\mathrm{C}\) corresponding to the reactions:

Figure 1

In the diferric protein, \(\ce{(Fe^{III})2Tf}\), the two iron(III) ions are bound at two similar, but non-identical sites, and the two possible monoferric protein products, \(\ce{(Fe^{III})Tf}\), can be denoted \(\{\ce{Fe^{III} . Tf}\}\) and \(\{\ce{Tf . Fe^{III}}\}\). Their relative abundance at equilibrium is given by the constant

\[ K=[\{\ce{Tf . Fe^{III}}\}]\,[\{\ce{Fe^{III} . Tf}\}]^{-1}=5.9. \]

3.5 Calculate the values of the two constants \(K_1'=[\{\ce{Fe^{III} . Tf}\}]\,[\ce{Fe^{III}}]^{-1}[\ce{Tf}]^{-1}\) and \(K_1''=[\{\ce{Tf . Fe^{III}}\}]\,[\ce{Fe^{III}}]^{-1}[\ce{Tf}]^{-1}\), respectively, corresponding to the formation of each monoferric form of transferrin.

3.6 Calculate the values of the two constants \(K_2'=[\ce{(Fe^{III})2Tf}]\,[\ce{Fe^{III}}]^{-1}[\{\ce{Fe^{III} . Tf}\}]^{-1}\) and \(K_2''=[\ce{(Fe^{III})2Tf}]\,[\ce{Fe^{III}}]^{-1}[\{\ce{Tf . Fe^{III}}\}]^{-1}\) respectively, corresponding to the formation of diferric transferrin from each of the monoferric forms.

The bound iron(III) ion at each binding site is surrounded by six donor atoms from various ligands. Thus, two oxygen atoms of a carbonate anion coordinate to the metal, and the following amino acid side chains from the protein primary structure also coordinate to the iron(III) ion with one potential donor atom each: one aspartate, one histidine and two tyrosine residues.

3.7 What is the total number of oxygen donor atoms that surround a 6-coordinate iron(III) ion in transferrin?

Official English text of the problem.

Answers

  • 3.1: Both complexes are square planar. In cisplatin, the two ammine ligands are adjacent, at \(90^\circ\); in transplatin, they are opposite, at \(180^\circ\). Their stereochemical SMILES are given in the solution.
  • 3.2: There are four ionic compounds: \[ \boxed{ \begin{gathered} \ce{[Pt(NH3)4][PtCl4]}\\ \ce{[Pt(NH3)3Cl][Pt(NH3)Cl3]}\\ \ce{[Pt(NH3)4][Pt(NH3)Cl3]2}\\ \ce{[Pt(NH3)3Cl]2[PtCl4]} \end{gathered}} \]
  • 3.3: \(\boxed{8}\) electrons: platinum(II) is \(5d^8\).
  • 3.4: \(\boxed{5d_{x^2-y^2}}\).
  • 3.5: \(\boxed{K_1'=6.8\times10^{19}\ \mathrm{L\,mol^{-1}}}\), \(\boxed{K_1''=4.0\times10^{20}\ \mathrm{L\,mol^{-1}}}\).
  • 3.6: \(\boxed{K_2'=1.7\times10^{20}\ \mathrm{L\,mol^{-1}}}\), \(\boxed{K_2''=2.8\times10^{19}\ \mathrm{L\,mol^{-1}}}\).
  • 3.7: \(\boxed{5}\) oxygen donor atoms.

Solution

3.1 — The two geometrical isomers

The ligands are ammonia, \(\ce{NH3}\), SMILES N, and chloride, \(\ce{Cl-}\), SMILES [Cl-]. Both complexes have four-coordinate, square-planar platinum(II).

  • cis-Diamminedichloridoplatinum(II), cisplatin:
    SMILES: [NH3]->[Pt@SP1+2](<-[NH3])(<-[Cl-])<-[Cl-]
    Draw platinum at the centre of a square, with ammonia ligands above and to the right, and chloride ligands below and to the left. The two ammonia ligands are adjacent; the two chloride ligands are also adjacent.

  • trans-Diamminedichloridoplatinum(II), transplatin:
    SMILES: [NH3]->[Pt@SP2+2](<-[NH3])(<-[Cl-])<-[Cl-]
    Draw platinum at the centre, with ammonia ligands above and below, and chloride ligands to the left and right. Each pair of identical ligands is opposite.

All four platinum–donor bonds lie in one plane. In these coordination SMILES, arrows denote ligand-to-metal dative bonds, and the @SP descriptors specify square-planar stereochemistry for the written neighbour order.

3.2 — Enumeration of the ionic compounds

A monomeric square-planar complex has four donor ligands. With \(n\) neutral ammonia ligands and \(4-n\) chloride ligands, its composition and charge are

\[ \ce{[Pt(NH3)_{n}Cl_{4-n}]}^{\,n-2}, \]

because platinum contributes \(+2\) and each chloride contributes \(-1\).

The charged possibilities are therefore:

\(n\) Complex ion Name SMILES
4 \(\ce{[Pt(NH3)4]^2+}\) Tetraammineplatinum(II) [NH3]->[Pt+2](<-[NH3])(<-[NH3])<-[NH3]
3 \(\ce{[Pt(NH3)3Cl]+}\) Triamminechloridoplatinum(II) [NH3]->[Pt+2](<-[NH3])(<-[NH3])<-[Cl-]
1 \(\ce{[Pt(NH3)Cl3]-}\) Amminetrichloridoplatinate(II) [NH3]->[Pt+2](<-[Cl-])(<-[Cl-])<-[Cl-]
0 \(\ce{[PtCl4]^2-}\) Tetrachloridoplatinate(II) [Cl-]->[Pt+2](<-[Cl-])(<-[Cl-])<-[Cl-]

The \(n=2\) complex is neutral and cannot itself supply either required ion.

There are two possible cations and two possible anions. Pairing each cation with each anion and imposing electrical neutrality gives exactly four salts:

  1. Tetraammineplatinum(II) tetrachloridoplatinate(II)
    \[ \ce{[Pt(NH3)4][PtCl4]} \] SMILES: [NH3]->[Pt+2](<-[NH3])(<-[NH3])<-[NH3].[Cl-]->[Pt+2](<-[Cl-])(<-[Cl-])<-[Cl-]

  2. Triamminechloridoplatinum(II) amminetrichloridoplatinate(II)
    \[ \ce{[Pt(NH3)3Cl][Pt(NH3)Cl3]} \] SMILES: [NH3]->[Pt+2](<-[NH3])(<-[NH3])<-[Cl-].[NH3]->[Pt+2](<-[Cl-])(<-[Cl-])<-[Cl-]

  3. Tetraammineplatinum(II) bis(amminetrichloridoplatinate(II))
    \[ \ce{[Pt(NH3)4][Pt(NH3)Cl3]2} \] SMILES: [NH3]->[Pt+2](<-[NH3])(<-[NH3])<-[NH3].[NH3]->[Pt+2](<-[Cl-])(<-[Cl-])<-[Cl-].[NH3]->[Pt+2](<-[Cl-])(<-[Cl-])<-[Cl-]

  4. Bis(triamminechloridoplatinum(II)) tetrachloridoplatinate(II)
    \[ \ce{[Pt(NH3)3Cl]2[PtCl4]} \] SMILES: [NH3]->[Pt+2](<-[NH3])(<-[NH3])<-[Cl-].[NH3]->[Pt+2](<-[NH3])(<-[NH3])<-[Cl-].[Cl-]->[Pt+2](<-[Cl-])(<-[Cl-])<-[Cl-]

The first two contain platinum, ammonia and chloride in the ratio \(2:4:4\); the last two have the ratio \(3:6:6\). Both reduce to the required empirical ratio \(1:2:2\).

This enumeration is exhaustive within the stated ligand inventory: the empirical formula supplies exactly four monodentate ligands per platinum, so all must be coordinated to maintain four-coordinate, monomeric complexes. All platinum centres above are square planar; dots in the salt SMILES separate the ions.

3.3 — Number of \(5d\) electrons

The platinum(II) ion, \(\ce{Pt^2+}\), has SMILES [Pt+2].

Neutral platinum has ground-state electron configuration

\[ [\ce{Xe}]\,4f^{14}5d^9 6s^1. \]

Removing the \(6s\) electron and one \(5d\) electron gives

\[ \ce{Pt^2+}:\quad [\ce{Xe}]\,4f^{14}5d^8. \]

Thus the ion has eight \(5d\) electrons.

3.4 — Highest-energy orbital

The four ligands lie along the \(x\) and \(y\) axes. The lobes of \(d_{x^2-y^2}\) point directly towards them, producing the strongest ligand–metal \(\sigma\)-antibonding interaction.

Removing the axial ligands reduces the interactions involving the \(z\) direction, while strengthening the four in-plane bonds raises the \(d_{x^2-y^2}\)-derived level particularly strongly. Therefore,

\[ \boxed{\text{highest-energy orbital}=5d_{x^2-y^2}}. \]

For square-planar \(5d^8\) platinum(II), this orbital is normally unoccupied.

3.5 — Binding constants for the two monoferric forms

The iron(III) ion is \(\ce{Fe^3+}\), SMILES [Fe+3]. We retain the problem’s \(\ce{Fe^{III}}\) notation and its protein shorthand. Full SMILES for transferrin and its iron complexes cannot be reconstructed from the supplied text, which gives neither a protein sequence nor a complete molecular structure.

Define the concentrations

\[ a=[\{\ce{Fe^{III} . Tf}\}],\qquad b=[\{\ce{Tf . Fe^{III}}\}],\qquad f=[\ce{Fe^{III}}],\qquad t=[\ce{Tf}]. \]

The first macroscopic binding step is

\[ \ce{Fe^{III} + Tf <=> (Fe^{III})Tf}. \]

Its product concentration includes both monoferric forms. Consequently,

\[ K_1=\frac{a+b}{ft}=K_1'+K_1''. \]

The given abundance ratio also gives

\[ K=\frac{b}{a}=\frac{K_1''}{K_1'}=5.9. \]

Combining these relationships,

\[ K_1'=\frac{K_1}{1+K}, \qquad K_1''=\frac{KK_1}{1+K}. \]

Using \(K_1=4.7\times10^{20}\),

\[ \begin{aligned} K_1' &=\frac{4.7\times10^{20}}{6.9} =6.8116\times10^{19} \simeq \boxed{6.8\times10^{19}\ \mathrm{L\,mol^{-1}}},\\[3pt] K_1'' &=\frac{5.9(4.7\times10^{20})}{6.9} =4.0188\times10^{20} \simeq \boxed{4.0\times10^{20}\ \mathrm{L\,mol^{-1}}}. \end{aligned} \]

For the concentration-based definitions in the question, concentrations in \(\mathrm{mol\,L^{-1}}\) give binding constants in \(\mathrm{L\,mol^{-1}}\). The abundance ratio \(K\) is dimensionless.

3.6 — Binding constants for formation of diferric transferrin

Let

\[ d=[\ce{(Fe^{III})2Tf}]. \]

The second macroscopic binding step is

\[ \ce{Fe^{III} + (Fe^{III})Tf <=> (Fe^{III})2Tf}, \]

so

\[ K_2=\frac{d}{f(a+b)}. \]

The two microscopic constants refer to the individual monoferric reactants:

\[ K_2'=\frac{d}{fa}, \qquad K_2''=\frac{d}{fb}. \]

Since \(b/a=K\),

\[ K_2'=K_2\frac{a+b}{a}=K_2(1+K), \]

and

\[ K_2''=K_2\frac{a+b}{b} =K_2\frac{1+K}{K}. \]

Using \(K_2=2.4\times10^{19}\),

\[ \begin{aligned} K_2' &=(2.4\times10^{19})(6.9) =1.656\times10^{20} \simeq \boxed{1.7\times10^{20}\ \mathrm{L\,mol^{-1}}},\\[3pt] K_2'' &=(2.4\times10^{19})\frac{6.9}{5.9} =2.8068\times10^{19} \simeq \boxed{2.8\times10^{19}\ \mathrm{L\,mol^{-1}}}. \end{aligned} \]

As a consistency check, either microscopic binding path must give the same overall equilibrium constant:

\[ \boxed{K_1'K_2'=K_1''K_2''=K_1K_2}. \]

This derivation does not require an assumption that the two binding sites are independent.

3.7 — Oxygen donor count

The donor contributions are:

Ligand or residue SMILES Donor atoms at one iron centre
Carbonate ion, \(\ce{CO3^2-}\) O=C([O-])[O-] Two oxygen atoms
Aspartate side chain *CC(=O)[O-] One carboxylate oxygen
Histidine side chain *Cc1cnc[nH]1 One imidazole nitrogen
Two tyrosine side chains, coordinating as tyrosinate *Cc1ccc([O-])cc1 for each One oxygen from each residue

Here * marks attachment to the rest of the protein; these are side-chain fragment SMILES. The histidine fragment shows a neutral tautomer, whose unprotonated ring nitrogen supplies the donor lone pair.

Therefore,

\[ N_{\mathrm O} =\underbrace{2}_{\text{carbonate}} +\underbrace{1}_{\text{aspartate}} +\underbrace{2}_{\text{two tyrosines}} =\boxed{5}. \]

Together with the histidine nitrogen, these give the specified six donor atoms.

The solution was checked against the official solution.