π-Hole Interactions with Various Nitro Compounds Relevant for Medicine: DFT Calculations and Surveys of the Cambridge Structural Database (CSD) and the Protein Data Bank (PDB)

Abstract

Model DFT computations and a thorough evaluation of the Cambridge structural database (CSD) and the protein data bank (PDB) were conducted to assess the occurrence and significance of intermolecular π-hole interactions with various nitro compounds relevant to medicine. DFT calculations indicate interaction energies between –3.9 to –6.5 kcal·mol–1, which is in the order of typical hydrogen- and halogen­-bonding interactions. Ample structural evidence for the occurrence of nitro π-hole interactions was found within the CSD and the PDB.