Crystal structure and interaction with bovine serum albumin of the Cu(I/II) complex [C20H32Cu2I3N4] n

[C20H32Cu2I3N4] n was synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, ESI-MS spectrometry, and IR spectra. The crystal structure was determined by X-ray single-crystal diffraction. The binding of the complex with bovine serum albumin (BSA) was studied by fluorescence spectroscopy under simulated physiological conditions. The binding constant (K b), the number of binding sites (n), and the corresponding thermodynamic parameters ΔH, ΔS, ΔG were calculated based on the van’t Hoff equation. The complex had strong ability to quench the fluorescence from BSA, and the quenching mechanism of this complex to BSA was static quenching. Hydrogen bonds and van der Waals forces are the interactions between the Cu(I/II) complex and BSA. According to the Forster non-radiation energy transfer theory, the binding average distance between the donor (BSA) and the acceptor (Cu(I/II) complex) was obtained. The effect of the complex on the BSA conformation was also studied by using synchronous fluorescence spectroscopy.