We report variable-temperature (VT) (17)O NMR spectra of [5-(17)O]-d-glucose in an aqueous solution and in glycerol at 14.1 and 21.1 T. The VT (17)O NMR data cover a wide range of motion for which the molecular rotational correlation time (τc) of glucose changes more than 5 orders of magnitude. The observed line width of the (17)O NMR signal for [5-(17)O]-d-glucose displays a maximum at ω0τc ≈ 1 and a minimum at ω0τc ≈ 150, where ω0 is the angular Larmor frequency of (17)O. Under the ultraslow motion condition (i.e., ω0τc > 150), the line width of the observed (17)O NMR signal increases drastically with τc, suggesting that the second-order quadrupolar interaction becomes the predominant relaxation mechanism. While this relaxation mechanism has long been predicted by theory, the current study reports the first experimental observation of such a phenomenon. The implications of this new relaxation mechanism on the spectral resolution limit in liquid-state NMR spectroscopy for half-integer spins are discussed.

We have examined the O quadrupole-central-transition (QCT) NMR signal from [O]nicotinamide (vitamin B3) dissolved in glycerol. Measurements were performed at five magnetic fields ranging from 9.4 to 35.2 T between 243 and 363 K. We found that, in the ultraslow motion regime, cross-correlation between the second-order quadrupole interaction and magnetic shielding anisotropy is an important contributor to the transverse relaxation process for the O QCT signal of [O]nicotinamide. While such a cross-correlation effect has generally been predicted by relaxation theory, we report here the first experimental evidence for this phenomenon in solution-state NMR for quadrupolar nuclei. We have discussed the various factors that determine the ultimate resolution limit in QCT NMR spectroscopy. The present study also highlights the advantages of performing QCT NMR experiments at very high magnetic fields (e.g., 35.2 T).

We report synthesis and solid-state 17O NMR characterization of α-D-glucose for which all six oxygen atoms are site-specifically 17O-labeled. Solid-state 17O NMR spectra were recorded for α-D-glucose/NaCl/H2O (2/1/1) cocrystals under...

We report the first observation of quadrupole-central-transition (QCT) Co (I=7/2) NMR signals from three cobalamin (Cbl) compounds (CNCbl, MeCbl, and AdoCbl) dissolved in glycerol/water. Measurements were performed at four magnetic fields ranging from 11.7 to 21.1 T. We found that the Co QCT signals observed for cobalamin compounds in the slow motion regime (ω τ ≫1) are significantly narrower than those observed from their aqueous solutions where the molecular tumbling is near the condition of ω τ ≈1. We demonstrated that an analysis of Co QCT signals recorded over different temperatures and at multiple magnetic fields allowed determination of both the Co quadrupole coupling constant and chemical shift anisotropy for each of the three cobalamins. We successfully applied the Co QCT NMR approach to monitor in situ the transformation of CNCbl to its "base off" form in the presence of KCN. We further discovered that, to obtain the maximum QCT signal intensity with the Hahn-echo sequence, a strong B field should be used for the first 90° pulse, but a weak B field for the second 180° pulse. The reported Co QCT NMR methodology opens up a new direction for studying structure and function of cobalamin compounds and their roles in biological processes.

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