The oxygen-evolving center (OEC) in photosynthesis is a unique Mn4 CaO5 -cluster that catalyzes the water-splitting reaction in nature. Understanding its catalytic mechanism for the O=O bond formation is of great challenge and long-standing issue, which is severely restricted by the lack of precise structure and mechanism mimics of this heterometallic-oxide cluster. Herein, we report two synthetic (Mn3 XO4 )2 O-clusters (X=Sr2+ , La3+ ) that closely mimic the heterometallic-oxide Mn3 XO4 cubane and three different types of μ-oxide bridges (μ2 -O2- , μ3 -O2- , and μ4 -O2- ) simultaneously as seen in the OEC. By resolving the crystal structures of both oxidized and reduced forms of the cluster, we have identified significant redox-induced structural changes that take place on the μ2 -oxide bridge, rather than the μ4 -oxide or μ3 -oxide bridges. Our results provide chemical insights into understanding the reactivity of three different types of oxide bridges in the biological Mn4 CaO5 -cluster in PSII.
Keywords: bioinorganic chemistry; heterometallic complexes; oxygen; photosynthesis; water splitting.
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