[Au(pyb-H)(mnt)]: A novel gold(III) 1,2-dithiolene cyclometalated complex with antimicrobial activity (pyb-H = C-deprotonated 2-benzylpyridine; mnt = 1,2-dicyanoethene-1,2-dithiolate)

PINTUS, ANNA

First

Member of the Collaboration Group

;ARAGONI, MARIA CARLA

Member of the Collaboration Group

;Cinellu, Maria A.

Member of the Collaboration Group

;MAIORE, LAURA

Member of the Collaboration Group

;ISAIA, FRANCESCO

Member of the Collaboration Group

;LIPPOLIS, VITO

Member of the Collaboration Group

;ORRU, GERMANO

Member of the Collaboration Group

;TUVERI, ENRICA

Member of the Collaboration Group

;Zucca, Antonio

Member of the Collaboration Group

;ARCA, MASSIMILIANO

Last

Member of the Collaboration Group

2017-01-01

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Abstract

The novel heteroleptic cyclometalated complex [AuIII(pyb-H)(mnt)] (1; pyb-H = C-deprotonated 2-benzylpyridine; mnt = 1,2-dicyanoethene-1,2-dithiolate) was tested against a panel of ten Gram positive (belonging to the Staphylococcus, Streptococcus spp. and Bacillus clausii), Gram negative (E. coli, K. pneumoniae, P. aeruginosa) bacteria and three yeasts belonging to the Candida spp. Complex 1 showed a remarkable bacteriostatic antimicrobial activity against staphylococci, with Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) values of 1.56 and 3.13 μg/mL for S. haemoliticus and S. aureus, respectively. Spectroscopic and electrochemical measurements, supported by Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations, were exploited to fully investigate the electronic structure of complex 1 and its relationship with the antimicrobial activity