Phosphorus-nitrogen compounds. Part 42. The comparative syntheses of 2-cis-4-ansa(N/O) and spiro(N/O) cyclotetraphosphazene derivatives: spectroscopic and crystallographic characterization, antituberculosis and cytotoxic activity studies

The reaction of N4P4Cl8 (1) with one equimolar amount of the sodium salt of an N/O donor-type bidentate ligand (2) afforded two kinds of derivatives, namely, mono-ferrocenyl-2-cis-4-dichloro-ansa- (2,4-ansa; 3) and mono-ferrocenyl-spiro- (spiro; 4) hexachlorocyclotetraphosphazenes. The reaction yield (35%) of 4 was significantly larger than that of 3 (14%). The 2,4-ansa compound (3) was reacted with excess secondary amines to produce 2-cis-4-dichloro-ansa-cyclotetraphosphazenes (3a-3d). On the other hand, the spiro compound (4) gave fully substituted mono-ferrocenyl-spiro-cyclotetraphosphazenes (4a-4d) with excess monoamines as well. The tetrameric phosphazene derivatives were characterized by ESI-MS and/or HRMS, FTIR, HSQC, HMBC, H-1, C-13, and P-31 NMR spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography (for 4). It is observed that the 2,4-ansa and spiro-cyclotetraphosphazenes have different thermal stabilities. Additionally, the CVs of the new mono-ferrocenyl pendant-armed cyclotetraphosphazenes revealed electrochemically reversible one-electron oxidation of the Fe-redox centre. The 2,4-ansa phosphazenes (3 and 3a-3d) have two different stereogenic P centers indicating that they are expected to be in racemic mixtures (RR'/SS'). The chiralities of 3a and 3c were investigated by chiral HPLC. The manuscript also deals with the antimicrobial activities against G(+)/G(-) bacteria and fungi, the interactions with plasmid DNA, the in vitro cytotoxic activities against L929 fibroblast and MCF7 breast cells, and the antituberculosis activities against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv of the cyclotetraphosphazenes.