Synthesis and spectroscopic RNA binding studies of [Ru(phen)2MHPIP]2+

A new ruthenium(II) polypyridyl complex, [Ru(phen)2MHPIP]2+ (phen = 1,10-phenanthroline, MHPIP=2-(3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenyl)imidazo[4,5-f]1,10-phenanthroline), has been synthesized and characterized. The binding of this complex with yeast tRNA has been investigated by UV, fluorescence and CD spectroscopy systematically. The experimental results suggest that the complex can bind to yeast tRNA enantioselectively, and that spectroscopic method is effective on studying the interaction of metal complexes with RNA.