Seg, 04 dezembro 2017, 11:00 - 12:00
Tipo de evento:
Seminário
MONDAY - December 4
11:00 am
Room 217D - Edifício Departamental
OLGA IRANZO
Institut des Sciences Moléculaires de Marseille UMR CNRS 7313, France
Bioinspired Copper Complexes of Histidine Containing Ligands: from Concepts to Biotechnological and Therapeutic Applications
Host: Cecília Roque
Abstract
Copper is a biologically active metal ion with unique hydrolytic and redox activities. Its borderline Lewis acid properties allows copper to bind to different donor atoms present in biomolecules forming complexes with diverse properties and thus, functionalities. Not surprisingly, copper is an essential cofactor in many enzymes that are critical for life as well as a key component in a myriad of biological functions. Among the target binding sites in biomolecules, histidine deserves a special attention as it is a crucial amino acid in copper coordination to peptides and proteins. The imidazole side chain acts as a nucleation site and the coordination to His residues generates complexes with high thermodynamic stability. On these premises, we have been developing His containing peptides and ligands to produce stable copper complexes for environmental friendly chemical transformation as well as therapeutic agents for cancer. In this communication an overview of both topics will be given.
