10.1021/ja004232+
The research investigates the primary kinetic isotope effects (KIE) for hydride transfer reactions between NAD+ analogues (pyridinium, quinolinium, phenanthridinium, and acridinium ions) and 1,3-dimethyl-2-phenylbenzimidazoline in a 4:1 mixture of 2-propanol and water at 25 °C. The study finds that the KIE values systematically vary from 6.27 to 4.06 as the equilibrium constant changes from around 10 to 10^12. This variation is consistent with Marcus theory, which assumes no high-energy intermediates and suggests that the perpendicular effect, arising from changes in bond distances and orders in critical complexes, is primarily responsible for the observed changes in KIE. The parallel effect (Leffler-Hammond effect) contributes less due to the high intrinsic barrier. The study supports Marcus theory's applicability to hydride transfer reactions and highlights the significant role of corner-cutting tunneling in hydrogen transfer reactions.