Aya Bazzoun
Research Mentor: James Penner-Hahn
Mentor Department: Chemistry and Biophysics, LSA
Author(s): James Penner-Hahn, Aya Bazzoun, Cvetan Djelovski
Session: Session 1 (9:00 AM – 9:50 AM)
Presentation Type: Poster 43
Abstract
Cobalamins are organometallic cobalt complexes that play central roles in biological and photochemical processes, making them valuable model systems for studying light-induced bond cleavage and proton-coupled reactions. In this project, propyl cobalamins were synthesized to investigate their photochemical behavior under controlled conditions. The synthesized propyl cobalamins went through photolysis to initiate homolytic Co–C bond cleavage. Time- resolved analyses were used to verify reaction pathways and identify photoproducts formed following excitation. A primary focus of this study was the quantification of proton release following photolysis. Proton generation was experimentally verified and the extent of proton release was calculated based on measured changes in solution properties following photolysis. These results provide insight into the mechanistic relationship between Co–C bond cleavage, radical formation, and proton-coupled processes in alkyl cobalamins. Overall, this work contributes to a deeper understanding of cobalamin photochemistry and establishes a framework for quantitatively linking photolytic reactions to proton release, with implications for both biological vitamin B12 chemistry and the design of photoresponsive organometallic systems.
