Synthesis, characterization and activity of imidazolate-bridged and Schiff-base dinuclear complexes as models of Cu,Zn-SOD. A comparative study

The diCuII complex of 1,4-bis(salicylideneamino)butan-2-ol, [Cu2(salbutO)ClO4], exhibits SOD-activity higher than imidazolate-bridged complexes [CuZn(dien)2(μ-Im)](ClO4)3·MeOH and [Cu2(dien)2(μ-Im)](ClO4)3 (dien = diethylenetriamine), which are in turn more efficient than [CuZn(salpn)Cl2]. [Cu2(salbutO)ClO4] is the most easily reducible of the four complexes and exhibits the highest activity among the SOD models reported so far.95