A Gadolinium(III) Complex Based on Pyridoxine Molecule with Single-Ion Magnet and Magnetic Resonance Imaging...

Pyridoxine (pyr) is a versatile molecule that forms part of the family of B vitamins. It is used to treat and prevent vitamin B₆ deficiency and certain types of metabolic disorders. Moreover, the pyridoxine molecule has been investigated as a suitable ligand toward metal ions. Nevertheless, the study of the magnetic properties of metal complexes containing lanthanide(III) ions and this biomolecule is unexplored. We have synthesized and characterized a novel pyridoxine-based Gd^III complex of formula [Gd^III(pyr)₂(H₂O)₄]Cl₃ · 2 H₂O (1) [pyr = pyridoxine]. 1 crystallizes in the triclinic system and space group Pī. In its crystal packing, cationic [Gd(pyr)₂(H₂O)₄]³⁺ entities are connected through H-bonding interactions involving non-coordinating water molecules and chloride anions. In addition, Hirshfeld surfaces of 1 were calculated to further investigate their intermolecular interactions in the crystal lattice. Our investigation of the magnetic properties of 1, through ac magnetic susceptibility measurements, reveals the occurrence of a slow relaxation in magnetization in this mononuclear Gd^III complex, indicating an unusual single-ion magnet (SIM) behavior for this pseudo-isotropic metal ion at very low temperatures. We also studied the relaxometric properties of 1, as a potential contrast agent for high-field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), from solutions of 1 prepared in physiological serum (0.0-3.2 mM range) and measured at 3 T on a clinical MRI scanner. The values of relaxivity obtained for 1 are larger than those of some commercial MRI contrast agents based on mononuclear Gd^III systems.