Hypersensitive radical probe studies of chloroperoxidase-catalyzed hydroxylation reactions

The oxidation of hypersensitive radical probes by chloroperoxidase from Caldariomyces fumago (CPO) was studied in an attempt to "time" a putative radical intermediate. Oxidation of (trans-2-phenylcyclopropyl)methane, previously studied by Zaks and Dodds [Zaks, A., and Dodds, D. R. (1995) J. Am. Chem. Soc. 115, 10419-10424] was reinvestigated. Unrearranged oxidation products were found as previously reported, and control experiments demonstrated that the cyclic alcohol from oxidation at the cyclopropylcarbinyl position, while subject to further oxidation, survives CPO oxidation as detectable species. However, in contrast to the report by Zaks and Dodds, the rearranged alcohol product expected from ring opening of a cyclopropylcarbinyl radical intermediate was shown to be unstable toward the enzyme oxidation reaction. Because of this instability, two new hypersensitive radical probes, (trans-2-phenylcyclopropyl)ethane and 2-(trans-2-phenylcyclopropyl)propane, and their potential cyclic and acyclic products from oxidation at the cyclopropylcarbinyl position were synthesized and tested. Oxidation of both of these probes at the cyclopropylcarbinyl position by CPO gave unrearranged alcohol products only, but control experiments again demonstrated that the rearranged alcohol products were unstable toward CPO oxidation conditions. From the combination of the probe and control studies, the lifetime of a putative radical intermediate must be less than 3 ps. Whereas the results are consistent with an insertion mechanism for production of alcohol product, they do not exclude a very short-lived intermediate.