A new Schiff base oxovanadium(IV) complex, [VO(Naph-L-Tyr)(Phen)]•CH₃OH (Naph-L-Tyr＝a Schiff base derived from 2-hydroxy-1-naphthaldehyde and L-Tyrosine, Phen＝1,10-phenanthroline), has been synthesized and characterized by elemental analyses, IR spectra. Single crystal X-ray diffraction results indicate that this complex structure belongs to triclinic crystal system, space group P-1 with the following crystallographic parameters: a＝1.00023(11) nm, b＝1.13478(12) nm, c＝1.34076(15) nm, a＝108.118(2)º, b＝96.3920(10)º, g＝92.4010(10)º, V＝1.4326(3) nm³, Z＝2, D_c＝1.420 g/cm³, F(000)＝634, and the final R₁＝0.0670, wR₂＝0.1324 [I＞2s(I)]. In the crystal, 1D chain structure was formed by intermolecular hydrogen bonds and π-π stacking interactions. The DNA-binding properties have been investigated by UV absorption, fluorescence, circular dichroism (CD) spectra and viscosity measurement. The results suggest that the complex binds to CT-DNA in an intercalative mode. Meanwhile, the cleavage reaction on plasmid pBR322 DNA monitored by submarine gel electrophoresis shows that this complex can cleave circular plasmid pBR322 DNA to nicked form.

Key words: oxovanadium(IV) complex, Schiff base, crystal structure, DNA interaction