New Catalytic Properties of Iron Porphyrins: Model Systems for Cytochrome P450-Catalyzed Dehydration of Aldoximes

Abstract

Various iron porphyrin systems were found to catalyze the dehydration of aldoximes, such as heptanaldoxime or phenylacetaldoxime, into the corresponding nitriles under mild conditions (t = 20 °C, neutral or slightly acidic pH). In all these systems, the presence of both the iron porphyrin catalyst and a reducing agent is required, indicating that the active species is the iron(II) porphyrin. The most efficient systems used either an organosoluble iron porphyrin, such as Fe(OEP), in the presence of a carboxylic acid and zinc amalgam as reducing agent, or a water-soluble heme fragment of cytochrome c (microperoxidase MP-11) in the presence of dithionite. The catalytic activity of the systems was greatly increased when using electron-rich iron porphyrins bearing an electron-donating axial ligand, such as imidazole, and a carboxylic acid cocatalyst in close proximity to the iron center. The activity of the best systems was comparable to that of microsomal cytochromes P450 (between 1 and 10 turnovers per min)....