Abstract
Changes in the acid dissociation constant, pKa, of p-carboxybenzeneboronic acid (PCBA) upon complex formation with monosaccharide are considered by using the three-dimensional reference interaction site model self-consistent field theory. The pKa of PCBA is lowered through complex formation, which is consistent with experimental observations. Free energy component analysis of the dissociation reaction was performed to investigate the details of the contribution to the pKa shift. The magnitudes of the changes in both the electronic energy and the solvation free energy were smaller for the PCBA-complex than for PCBA. These smaller changes can be attributed to the delocalization of the excess charge and to a reduction of the solvent-accessible area near the boric acid group because of the steric bulk of the monosaccharide.