RESUMO
Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is an important signaling molecule that exerts action on various bioinorganic targets. Despite this importance, few studies have investigated the differential reactivity of the physiologically relevant H2S and HS(-) protonation states with metal complexes. Here we report the distinct reactivity of H2S and HS(-) with zinc(II) and cobalt(II) phthalocyanine (Pc) complexes and highlight the chemical reversibility and cyclability of each metal. ZnPc reacts with HS(-), but not H2S, to generate [ZnPc-SH](-), which can be converted back to ZnPc by protonation. CoPc reacts with HS(-), but not H2S, to form [Co(I)Pc](-), which can be reoxidized to CoPc by air. Taken together, these results demonstrate the chemically reversible reaction of HS(-) with metal phthalocyanine complexes and highlight the importance of H2S protonation state in understanding the reactivity profile of H2S with biologically relevant metal scaffolds.