Over or under: hydride attack at the metal versus the coordinated nitrosyl ligand in ferric nitrosyl porphyrins†
Abstract
Hydride attack at a ferric heme-NO to give an Fe–HNO intermediate is a key step in the global N-cycle. We demonstrate differential reactivity when six- and five-coordinate ferric heme-NO models react with hydride. Although Fe–HNO formation is thermodynamically favored from this reaction, Fe–H formation is kinetically favored for the 5C case.