title: Complexation of phosphates by 1,3-bis(3-(2-pyridylureido)propyl)-1,1,3,3-tetramethyldisiloxane.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Compounds containing a urea or thiourea moiety form complexes with anions thanks to the ability to form quite strong hydrogen bonds. We have synthesized 1,3-bis(3-(2-pyridylureido)propyl)-1,1,3,3-tetramethyldisiloxane (1). Compound 1 contains two urea moieties connected by a long flexible linker; thus, it should be able to adopt a structure suitable for formation of quite stable complexes with anions.
  
  
  METHODS
  The ability to form complexes of compound 1 with phosphates was tested by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). Full scan ESI mass spectra and collision-induced dissociation tandem mass (CID-MS/MS) spectra of the ions of interest were obtained on a quadrupole time-of-flight (QTOF) mass spectrometer.
  
  
  RESULTS
  It has been found that compound 1 is not only much more prone to form complexes with the phosphate anion than with other inorganic anions, but it is also able to form complexes with organic phosphates, namely nucleotides and phospholipids. However, compound 1 is not able to form complexes with organic compounds not containing a phosphate group (e.g. nucleosides, sugars, glycerolipids).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Compound 1 can be regarded as selective towards phosphate-containing organic compounds. Formation of such complexes may have some interesting applications for identification of organic phosphates in crude extracts from biological materials.
authors.affiliation: Adam Mickiewicz University, Faculty of Chemistry, Umultowska 89B, 61-614, Poznań, Poland.
authors.forename: Rafał
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Frański
authors.affiliation: Adam Mickiewicz University, Faculty of Chemistry, Umultowska 89B, 61-614, Poznań, Poland.
authors.forename: Błażej
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gierczyk
authors.affiliation: Adam Mickiewicz University, Faculty of Chemistry, Umultowska 89B, 61-614, Poznań, Poland.
authors.forename: Grzegorz
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Markiewicz
authors.affiliation: Adam Mickiewicz University, Faculty of Chemistry, Umultowska 89B, 61-614, Poznań, Poland.
authors.forename: Tomasz
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kozik