Herein, we report on the synthesis and structural characterization of a series of trigonal and tetrahedral cationic copper(I) complexes, bearing phosphine or N-heterocyclic carbene ligands as donors, with benzthiazol-2-pyridine (pybt) and benzthiazol-2-quinoline (qybt) acting as π-chromophores. The compounds are highly colored due to their MLCT (MLCT = metal-to-ligand charge transfer) states absorbing between ca. λ = 400-500 nm, with ILCT (ILCT = intraligand charge transfer) states in the UV region. The relative shifts of the S→S absorption correlate with the computed highest occupied molecular orbital-lowest unoccupied molecular orbital gaps, the qybt complexes generally being lower in energy than the pybt ones due to the larger conjugation of the quinoline-based ligand. The compounds exhibit, for Cu complexes, rare intense long-lived near-IR emission with λ ranging from 593 to 757 nm, quantum yields of up to Φ = 0.11, and lifetimes τ of several microseconds in the solid state as well as in poly(methyl methacrylate) films. Although a bathochromic shift of the emission is observed with λ ranging from 639 to 812 nm and the lifetimes are greatly increased at 77 K, no clear indication for thermally activated delayed fluorescence was found, leaving us to assign the emission to originate from a (Cu→pybt/qybt)MLCT state. The red to near-IR emission is a result of incorporation of the sulfur into the chromophore ligand, as related nitrogen analogues emit in the green to orange region of the electromagnetic spectrum. The photophysical results and conclusions have further been corroborated with density functional theory (DFT)/time-dependent DFT calculations, confirming the nature of the excited states and also the trends of the redox potentials.

Four boron-based donor-spiro-acceptor compounds, composed of different donor moieties and borylated 2-phenylpyridines as the acceptor, were studied. Their intense photoluminescence in the solid state can be tuned by changing the donor and long emission lifetimes on the microsecond scale indicate thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF).

Nitrogen availability is a growth-limiting factor in many habitats 1 , and the global nitrogen cycle involves prokaryotes and eukaryotes competing for this precious resource. Only some bacteria and archaea can fix elementary nitrogen; all other organisms depend on the assimilation of mineral or organic nitrogen. The nitrogenrich compound guanidine occurs widely in nature 2-4 , but its utilization is impeded by pronounced resonance stabilization 5 , and enzymes catalysing hydrolysis of free guanidine have not been identified. Here we describe the arginase family protein GdmH (Sll1077) from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 as a Ni 2+ -dependent guanidine hydrolase. GdmH is highly specific for free guanidine. Its activity depends on two accessory proteins that load Ni 2+ instead of the typical Mn 2+ ions into the active site. Crystal structures of GdmH show coordination of the dinuclear metal cluster in a geometry typical for arginase family enzymes and allow modelling of the bound substrate. A unique amino-terminal extension and a tryptophan residue narrow the substrate-binding pocket and identify homologous proteins in further cyanobacteria, several other bacterial taxa and heterokont algae as probable guanidine hydrolases. This broad distribution suggests notable ecological relevance of guanidine hydrolysis in aquatic habitats.

A novel degradation pathway enables rhizosphere-associated bacteria to utilize canavanine.