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Reaction between bromo tricarbonyl manganese(I) and N,N′-bis(phenyl)-1,4-diaza-1,3-butadiene ligands, bearing different electron-donating and electron-withdrawing groups R = OCH3, Cl, and NO2 in the ortho- and para-positions on the phenyl substituent, afforded [MnBr(CO)3(N–N)] complexes. The influence of the character and position of the substituent on the dark stability and carbon monoxide releasing kinetics was systematically investigated and correlated with the data of the time-dependent density functional theory calculations. The combined UV/Vis and IR data clearly revealed that the aerated solutions of [MnBr(CO)3(N–N)] in either coordinating or noncoordinating solvents are dark stable and the fluctuations observed during the incubation period especially in the case of the nitro derivatives may be attributed to the exchange of the axial bromo ligand with the coordinating solvent molecules. The free ligands and nitro complexes were non-cytotoxic to HepG2 cells under both the dark and illumination conditions. In the dark, Mn(I) compounds, incorporating o-OCH3 and o-Cl, exhibited excellent cytotoxicity with IC50 values of 18.1 and 11.8 μM, while their para-substituted analogues were inactive in the dark and active upon the irradiation at 365 nm with IC50 values of 5.7 and 6.7 μM, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability of an atom or molecular fragment to bind multiple carbon monoxide (CO) molecules to form multicarbonyl adducts is a fundamental trait of transition metals. Transition-metal carbonyl complexes are vital to industry, appear naturally in the active sites of a number of enzymes (such as hydrogenases), are promising therapeutic agents, and have even been observed in interstellar dust clouds. Despite the wealth of established transition-metal multicarbonyl complexes, no elements outside groups 4 to 12 of the periodic table have yet been shown to react directly with two or more CO units to form stable multicarbonyl adducts. Here we present the synthesis of a borylene dicarbonyl complex, the first multicarbonyl complex of a main-group element prepared using CO. The compound is additionally stable towards ambient air and moisture. The synthetic strategy used-liberation of a borylene ligand from a transition metal using donor ligands-is broadly applicable, leading to a number of unprecedented monovalent boron species with different Lewis basic groups. The similarity of these compounds to conventional transition-metal carbonyl complexes is demonstrated by photolytic liberation of CO and subsequent intramolecular carbon-carbon bond activation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Only a handful of elements are able to be controllably homocatenated (that is, to be formed into one- or two-dimensional chains or rings of the element), because most have weak element-element bonds. Boron forms strong B-B bonds, but its favourable cluster formation makes homocatenation very difficult. Recently, the coupling of borylene (:BR) ligands on a metal was predicted computationally. We have brought this prediction to fruition experimentally, and extended it by adding two further borylene units, stepwise forming a B4 chain bound to a metal under mild conditions. This complex is a useful model for understanding the metal-boron interactions required to promote transition of the boron atoms from borylene ligands to oligoborane networks bound side-on. The concept shows great promise for the controlled construction of one-dimensional boron chains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]