Solution equilibrium of divalent metal ions (M Mn21) Redox-inert metals such as mercury (Hg), lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) are toxic agents, exposure to these and other essential metals may cause negative effects on health.2) Metals are known to be able to bind with proteins in human body which may lead to various detrimental effects on human health. For instance, high exposure of zinc results in respiratory and gastrointestinal toxicity, clinical changes and copper deficiency.3) Excess amount of copper can cause serious diseases including cancers, liver and kidney damage.4) Cobalt exposure leads to ailment such as vision problem, lung problem, heart problem and thyroid damage. Exposure to manganese can cause disorders such as Parkinson, schizophrenia and dullness. Although nickel appears to be essential for plants and bacteria, however for human this metal was found to be difficult to elucidate and may cause severe health problems such as cancer.
5)Chelation therapy is known as an effective treatment to reduce the harmful effects of metal ions by utilizing the metal binding ability of organic ligand.6-10) Therefore to prevent metal intoxication, the ligand used should have stronger binding ability than the proteins. Phenylpropanoid derivatives, currently considered as promising chelating agents, are classified as phenolic acids that are known to function as natural antioxidant, free radical scavenger, anti-carcinogenic, and chemoprevention agent. [11][12][13][14] In this work, caffeic acid and dihydrocaffeic acid were chosen as the phenylpropanoid derivatives. Caffeic acid (denoted as ligand C) is an important anti-oxidative compound which can be extracted from natural sources such as coffee bean, potatoes, grains and vegetables.
15)This compound has beneficial pharmacological effects such as inhibit cancer cell in human HT-1080 fibro sarcoma cell line. 16,17) Dihydrocaffeic acid (denoted as ligand D) is a degradation product of caffeic acid, this compound is one of the critical phenolic antioxidants commonly present in olives, 18) and in blood or urine as the result of secondary metabolism of various polyphenols.19) The ortho-dihydroxyl structure of ligand D is also known to act as an active radical-scavenger.
15)On the other hand, acetylcysteine is an organic compound which has been approved as one of the essential medicines for basic health system by World Health Organization (WHO).
20)Acetylcysteine is known as a precursor for glutathione, the antioxidant which prevents formation of oxidative species in tissue. 21,22) . 22,24,25) The mixed ligand combination of acetylcysteine and ligands C or D is expected to improve the stability of the chelate complex.Recently, the complexation of ligands C and D with metal ion has gained attention of some researchers. [26][27][28][29][30] To the best of our knowledge, very few literatures are available for the complexation study of ligand D with essential divalent metal ions. Therefore, in order to gain primary understanding on the complexation of ligands C and D, potenti...