2,6-Diaminopyridine derivatives as models of molecular sensor for nucleic acid base detection: ab initio calculations of electronic effects induced by hydrogen bonds formation

The performance of a molecular sensor for detecting nucleic acid base was studied by molecular orbital calculations of model compounds. The model compounds consist of a detecting unit (pyridine derivative), a conducting unit (benzene) and a connection between them. The changes of the HOMO, LUMO energy levels and charge distributions of the conducting unit by the hydrogen bonds formation between the detecting unit and thymine were studied. The calculations show that the choice of the connection and its position are significantly important to efficiently transmit the electronic effects to the conducting unit. The comparison with aminopyridine, where the pyridine ring plays both detecting and conducting units, shows that the electronic effects are transmitted quite efficiently, if the connection is properly selected. The size of the electronic effects by the formation of the hydrogen bonds were also compared with those induced by the change of the torsional angle between the pyridine and benzene rings and by substitution of the benzene ring.