The isoforms of rat liver apo-metallothionein (MT) were reconstituted in vitro with Cd and Zn ions to study the order of binding of the seven metal sites. Reconstitution with seven Cd ions resulted in a metalloprotein similar to induced Cd,Zn-MT by the criteria of electrophoretic mobility, insensitivity to proteolysis by subtilisin and the pH-dependent release of Cd. Proteolytic digestion of MT...

During the last twenty years the Polyhedral Skeletal Electron Pair Theory and the isolobal analogy have provided a theoretical basis for the rapid experimental developments, which have occurred in metal cluster chemistry. These theoretical principles have been underpinned by m.o. calculations on specific molecules and more generally by the Tensor Surface Harmonic Theory. This paper will review ...

113Cd-NMR studies have established that vertebrate and invertebrate metallothioneins contain two unique metal-thiolate clusters. However, it proved to be difficult to account theoretically for all features of the 113Cd-NMR spectra. In a reinvestigation of these features using chromatographically homogeneous 113Cd7-metallothionein we have identified a total of seven 113Cd resonances and have con...

[(THF)3Sm(SePh)2Zn(SePh)2]n decomposes to give a variety of products, including [(THF)8Sm4Se(SePh)8](2+)[Zn8Se(SePh)16](2-), an ionic cluster that can also be prepared in more than 60% yield by stoichiometric addition of Se to a mixture of Sm(SePh)3 and Zn(SePh)2. The isostructural Nd compound [(THF)8Nd4Se(SePh)8](2+)[Zn8Se(SePh)16](2-) was also prepared by the stoichiometric route to establish...

The enrichment of the Intra-Cluster Medium (ICM) with heavy elements is reviewed. There is now good observational evidence for enrichment including abundance ratios and metallicity distributions. Various processes involved in the enrichment process – rampressure stripping, galactic winds, galaxy-galaxy interactions, AGN outflows and intra-cluster supernovae – are described. Simulations of the I...

The simple, well-understood coordination chemistry of the cyanide ligand is of significant utility in the design of new single-molecule magnets. Its preference for bridging two transition metals in a linear M'-CN-M geometry permits the use of multidentate blocking ligands in directing the assembly of specific molecular architectures. This approach has been employed in the synthesis of numerous ...

We test whether the peak absolute magnitude MV (TO) of the Globular Cluster Luminosity Function (GCLF) can be used for reliable extragalactic distance determinations. Starting with the luminosity function of the Galactic Globular Clusters listed in Harris catalog, we determine MV (TO) either using current calibrations of the absolute magnitude MV (RR) of RR Lyrae stars as a function of the clus...

We report on the synthesis of novel coinage metal NHC (N-heterocyclic carbene) compounds of the germanium-rich metalloid clusters [Ge9R3] and [Ge9R2] with R = Si(Pr)3 and RI = Si(TMS)3. NHCCu{η-Ge9R3} with R = Si(Pr)3 (1) represents a less bulky silyl group-substituted derivative of the known analogous compounds with R = Si(Bu)3 or Si(TMS)3. The coordination of the [NHCDippCu]+ moiety to the cl...

Neuronal growth inhibitory factor (GIF), a metallothionein-like protein (metallothionein-3), impairs the survival and neurite formation of cultured neurons. Native GIF contains 4 Cu(I) and three Zn(II) ions organized in homometallic metal-thiolate clusters. However, the cluster localization is not known. In this study, the metal-thiolate clusters formed with monovalent and divalent metal ions i...