An unexpected all-metal aromatic tetranuclear silver cluster in human copper chaperone Atox1

Metal clusters, such as iron-sulfur clusters, play key roles in sustaining life and are intimately involved in the functions of metalloproteins. Herein we report the formation and crystal structure of a planar square tetranuclear silver cluster when silver ions were mixed with human copper chaperone Atox1. Quantum chemical studies reveal that two Ag 5s(1) electrons in the tetranuclear silver cluster fully occupy the one bonding molecular orbital, with the assumption that this Ag-4 cluster is Ag-4(2+), leading to extensive electron delocalization over the planar square and significant stabilization. This bonding pattern of the tetranuclear silver cluster represents an aromatic all-metal structure that follows a 4n + 2 electron counting rule (n = 0). This is the first time an all-metal aromatic silver cluster was observed in a protein.

Automated summary

Metal clusters, such as iron-sulfur clusters, play important roles in sustaining life and metalloprotein functions. In this study, the formation and crystal structure of a planar square tetranuclear silver cluster were reported when silver ions were mixed with human copper chaperone Atox1. Quantum chemical studies revealed that the tetranuclear silver cluster has an aromatic all-metal structure, representing the first observation of such structure in a protein.