Metalloenzymes preorganize the reaction environment to steer substrate(s) along the required reaction coordinate. Here, we show that phosphine ligands selectively facilitate protonation of binuclear silver hydride cations, [LAg2(H)]+ by optimizing the geometry of the active site. This is a key step in the selective, catalysed extrusion of carbon dioxide from formic acid, HO2CH, with important applications (for example, hydrogen storage). Gas-phase ion-molecule reactions, collision-induced dissociation (CID), infrared and ultraviolet action spectroscopy and computational chemistry link structure to reactivity and mechanism. [Ag2(H)]+ and [Ph3PAg2(H)]+ react with formic acid yielding Lewis adducts, while [(Ph3P)2Ag2(H)]+ is unreactive. Using bis(diphenylphosphino)methane (dppm) reshapes the geometry of the binuclear Ag2(H)+ scaffold, triggering reactivity towards formic acid, to produce [dppmAg2(O2CH)]+ and H2. Decarboxylation of [dppmAg2(O2CH)]+ via CID regenerates [dppmAg2(H)]+. These gas-phase insights inspired variable temperature NMR studies that show CO2 and H2 production at 70 °C from solutions containing dppm, AgBF4, NaO2CH and HO2CH.

A series of 23 nitroxides () was tested for biofilm modulatory activity using a crystal violet staining technique. 3-(Dodecane-1-thiyl)-4-(hydroxymethyl)-2,2,5,5-tetramethyl-1-pyrrolinoxyl () was found to significantly suppress biofilm formation and elicit dispersal events in both Pseudomonas aeruginosa and mixed-culture biofilms. Twitching and swarming motilities were enhanced by nitroxide , leaving the planktonic-specific swimming motility unaffected and suggesting that the mechanism of -mediated biofilm modulation is linked to the hyperactivation of surface-associated cell motilities. Preliminary structure-activity relationship studies identify the dodecanethiyl chain, hydroxymethyl substituent and the free radical moiety to be structural features pertinent to the anti-biofilm activity of .

3-(Dodecanethiyl)-4-(hydroxymethyl)-2,2,5,5-tetramethyl-1-pyrrolinoxyl (5) effectively disperses biofilms of relevance to cultural materials while preventing their formation.

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