Kinetic studies of the gold(I) mediated thiol/disulfide exchange

INOR 139

Stephanie A. Perkins, perkinss@usc.edu, Chemistry, University of Southern California, 840 Downey Way, Los Angeles, CA 90089 and Amy M. Barrios, Deparment of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Southern California, 30 South 2000 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84112.
Gold(I) compounds have long been known to exhibit therapeutic effects in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. However, there is still no molecular explanation for the antiarthritic effects of gold. Because gold is thiophilic, one possible biological target of the Au(I) antiarthritic compounds is the modification of the biological thiol/disulfide balance. The reversible formation of disulfide bonds is an important biochemical process. In RA patients, levels of free thiolates are inversely correlated with disease activity. Previous studies have shown that gold(I) compounds play a role in this exchange. This research uses UV/VIS and NMR techniques to further investigate the kinetics and mechanism of the gold-mediated thiol/disulfide exchange reaction.