Polysaccharide- and β-Cyclodextrin-Based Chiral Selectors for Enantiomer Resolution: Recent Developments and Applications

Polysaccharides, oligosaccharides, and their derivatives, particularly of amylose, cellulose, chitosan, and β-cyclodextrin, are well-known chiral selectors (CSs) of chiral stationary phases (CSPs) in chromatography, because they can separate a wide range of enantiomers. Typically, such CSPs are prepared by physically coating, or chemically immobilizing the polysaccharide and β-cyclodextrin derivatives onto inert silica gel carriers as chromatographic support. Over the past few years, new chiral selectors have been introduced, and progressive methods to prepare CSPs have been exploited. Also, chiral recognition mechanisms, which play a crucial role in the investigation of chiral separations, have been better elucidated. Further insights into the broad functional performance of commercially available chiral column materials and/or the respective newly developed chiral phase materials on enantiomeric separation (ES) have been gained. This review summarizes the recent developments in CSs, CSP preparation, chiral recognition mechanisms, and enantiomeric separation methods, based on polysaccharides and β-cyclodextrins as CSs, with a focus on the years 2019–2020 of this rapidly developing field.     

Direct liquid chromatographic enantioseparation of sotalol and other β-blockers using an α1-acid glycoprotein-based chiral stationary phase

The behaviour of an α₁-acid glycoprotein-based chiral stationary phase (Chiral AGP) towards changes in pH and organic modifier in the mobile phase was investigated in order to deduce suitable conditions for the liquid chromatographic enantioseparation of a series of β-adrenoreceptor blocking drugs. The effects of the pH of the mobile phase on retention, selectivity and resolution were studied. Methanol was the only non-ionic modifier tested in the mobile phase while different aliphatic carboxylic acids (C₄ to C₈) and alkanesulfonic acids (C₆ to C₈) were used as ionic modifiers. The influence of the nature and concentration of these modifiers on retention and enantioselectivity was investigated. Under these conditions, enantiomeric separations could be obtained for more than 70% of the β-blocking agents examined. The use of heptanoic acid as an ionic additive in the mobile phase has permitted the resolution of sotalol enantiomers. An enantioselective assay for sotalol was then developed and validated.     

Preparation of α- or β-trifluoromethylated vinylstannanes and their cross-coupling reactions

α- or β-Trifluoromethylated vinylstannanes 1, 2a, 3 and 4 were prepared form 1,1-bis(phenylthio)-2,2,3,3,3-pentafluoropropylbenzene (5) via several steps. The cross-coupling arylation reactions of 1–4 with aryl iodides bearing a bromo, methoxy, methyl, nitro or trifluoromethyl group on para- or meta-position of benzene ring afforded the corresponding coupling products in good yields. Compounds 1, 2a and 4 underwent the acylation reaction with various types of acyl chlorides to give the corresponding trifluoromethylated enone derivatives in good yields. Reduction of trifluoromethylated enone derivatives with LiAlH₄, followed by Fridel-Craft’s type of cyclization with AlCl₃ provided trifluoromethylated indene derivatives in good yields.     

Preparation and enantiomer separation behavior of selectively methylated β-cyclodextrin-bonded stationary phases for high performance chromatography

Native and three selectively methylated β-cyclodextrin (β-CD)-bonded stationary phases without an unreacted spacer arm for liquid chromatography were prepared, where heptakis(2-O-methyl)-β-CD, heptakis(3-O-methyl)-β-CD and heptakis(2,3-di-O-methyl)-β-CD were used as the methylated β-CDs. The enantiomer separation abilities of the resulting β-CD stationary phases for 12 pairs of dansylamino acid enantiomers and six pairs of N-3,5-dinitrobenzoyl amino acid methyl esters as model solutes were investigated. The effects of pH and methanol content of the mobile phase on the retention and resolution were examined to optimize the mobile phase conditions. The optimum resolution for the dansylamino acids was achieved using a mobile phase consisting of 1.0% triethylammonium acetate buffer (pH 5.0)–methanol (v/v 4/6) on the β-CD stationary phase. Heptakis(3-O-methyl)- and heptakis(2,3-di-O-methyl)-β-CD-bonded stationary phases showed little enantiomer separation abilities for the dansylamino acids. The heptakis(2-O-methyl)-β-CD-bonded stationary phase exhibited no enantioselectivities for those solutes.

For the N-3,5-dinitrobenzoyl amino acid methyl esters, the optimum resolution was achieved using a mobile phase consisting of 1.0% triethylammonium acetate buffer (pH 5.0)–methanol (v/v 9/1) on a heptakis(2-O-methyl)-β-CD stationary phase. The heptakis(2,3-di-O-methyl)-β-CD-bonded stationary phases exhibited no enantioselectivities for the N-3,5-dinitrobenzoyl amino acid methyl esters. β-CD and heptakis(3-O-methyl)-β-CD-bonded stationary phases had no enantiomer separation abilities for those solutes except for the N-3,5-dinitrobenzoyl phenylalanine methyl ester.     

Magnetic and EPR Studies of α-, β-, and γ-Fe2WO6 Phases at Low Temperatures

The polymorphic modifications α-, β-, and γ-Fe₂WO₆ of the iron tungstate system were studied by means of magnetic susceptibility and EPR measurements at low temperatures. Both methods revealed a significant paramagnetic contribution, probably resulting from local distortions of the antiferromagnetic bulk structure induced by a disturbed cation ordering or the presence of Fe²⁺ ions. The magnetic susceptibility revealed a peak at 260 K for all samples which can be related with an AF phase transition. The EPR spectra comprised the contribution of various isolated paramagnetic iron centers, one arising from high-spin Fe³⁺ ions in rhombic crystal field symmetry with E/D ≈ 1/3 and D ≈ 0.22 cm^-1, an anisotropic EPR signal consistent with an S= 3/2 ground state with large zero-field splitting, and a dominant component in the g ≈ 2 region presumably arising from an S = 1/2; spin state. The latter spectra were tentatively attributed to the formation of multi-iron clusters, one of them invoking the presence of Fe²⁺ ions as well. For the βFe₂WO₆ phase an additional EPR spectrum was observed, which probably results from high-spin Fe³⁺ ions in a weak crystal field.     

The effect of analyte lipophilicity on the resolution of α-amino acids on a HPLC chiral stationary phase based on crown ether

The effect of analyte lipophilicity on the resolution of α-amino acids on a chiral stationary phase based on chiral crown ether has been examined by the chromatographic resolution trends for the resolution of a homologous series of five α-amino acids with an alkyl group of different length at the chiral center. The retention factors (k₁ and k₂) for the two enantiomers and the separation factors (α) were found to depend on the lipophilicity of the α-amino acid. In general, the retention factors increased as the organic modifier content in the mobile phase increased, the degree of the enhancement of retention factors being dependent on the analyte lipophilicity. The separation factors also increased as the analyte lipophilicity and the organic modifier content in the mobile phase increased. Possible rationales for these behaviors have been proposed.     

Synthesis of α- -fucopyranosyl disaccharides with thioglycosidic linkages and characterization of α- -fucosidases from bovine kidney and epididymis by their inhibitory activities

Sulfur-linked disaccharide analogs of three α- -fucopyranosyl 2-acetamido-2-deoxy-β- -glucopyranosides and one α- -fucopyranosyl β- -galactopyranoside were synthesized by substitution reactions of sulfonates and ring-opening reactions of aziridine as well as oxirane derivatives using 1-thio-α- -fucopyranose as nucleophile. Fucosidases from bovine kidney and epididymis were inhibited by all of these disaccharide analogs and their Ki values range from 0.65 to 4.9 mM.     

The Amyloid Fibril-Forming β-Sheet Regions of Amyloid β and α-Synuclein Preferentially Interact with the Molecular Chaperone 14-3-3ζ

14-3-3 proteins are abundant, intramolecular proteins that play a pivotal role in cellular signal transduction by interacting with phosphorylated ligands. In addition, they are molecular chaperones that prevent protein unfolding and aggregation under cellular stress conditions in a similar manner to the unrelated small heat-shock proteins. In vivo, amyloid β (Aβ) and α-synuclein (α-syn) form amyloid fibrils in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, respectively, a process that is intimately linked to the diseases’ progression. The 14-3-3ζ isoform potently inhibited in vitro fibril formation of the 40-amino acid form of Aβ (Aβ₄₀) but had little effect on α-syn aggregation. Solution-phase NMR spectroscopy of ¹⁵N-labeled Aβ₄₀ and A53T α-syn determined that unlabeled 14-3-3ζ interacted preferentially with hydrophobic regions of Aβ₄₀ (L11-H21 and G29-V40) and α-syn (V3-K10 and V40-K60). In both proteins, these regions adopt β-strands within the core of the amyloid fibrils prepared in vitro as well as those isolated from the inclusions of diseased individuals. The interaction with 14-3-3ζ is transient and occurs at the early stages of the fibrillar aggregation pathway to maintain the native, monomeric, and unfolded structure of Aβ₄₀ and α-syn. The N-terminal regions of α-syn interacting with 14-3-3ζ correspond with those that interact with other molecular chaperones as monitored by in-cell NMR spectroscopy.     

Strictly Regiocontrolled α-Monosubstitution of Cyclic Carbonyl Compounds with Alkynyl and Alkyl Groups via Pd-Catalyzed Coupling of Cyclic α-Iodoenones with Organozincs[]

The conditions for the Pd-catalyzed cross coupling of cyclic α-iodoenones, such as 2-iodo-2-cyclohexenone, with alkynylzincs have been optimized. The use of tris(o-furyl)phosphine (TFP) as a ligand and DMF as a solvent has led to the formation of α-alkynylenones in excellent yields. This optimized procedure has been applied to the synthesis of (±)-harveynone and (±)-tricholomenyn A in high yields. Investigation of related α-alkylation reactions using alkylzincs has revealed the following. Methylzinc and primary alkylzinc derivatives readily undergo Pd-catalyzed cross coupling with α-iodoenones. Although (s-Bu)₂Zn also undergoes Pd-catalyzed cross coupling, only the n-Bu-substituted products were obtained. α-Benzylation and α-homobenzylation can proceed satisfactorily, whereas allylzinc and propargylzinc derivatives undergo only addition to the carbonyl group. Although some promising results have been obtained in α-homoallylation and α-homopropargylation, these reactions need to be further improved.     

Partially Methylated β-Cyclodextrin Analysis: A Systematic Approach to Appropriate RP Column Selection

In order to establish guidelines to help the analyst in the choice of the most suitable octadecyl or octyl bonded phase for the LC analysis of a given partially methylated β-CD sample, analyses of four commercially available dimethyl-β-cyclodextrins (DM-β-CDs) have been carried out on nine octyl (C₈) or octadecyl (C₁₈) silica bonded or polymeric bonded phases which differ significantly in their hydrophilic and hydrophobic properties. Chromatograms show that the nature of the packing materials has considerable influence on the resolution of complex mixtures composed of closely related compounds such as partially methylated β-CDs. Among various kinds of C₈ and C₁₈ bonded phases, silica based and monomeric phases which present both reinforced hydrophobic and polar interactions showed the best performance. Whatever the complexity of the commercial DM-β-CD, the richest chromatographic fingerprints, which best depict the complexity of the mixture, are obtained with Nucleosil 50-5-C₈ column. For the simplest mixtures, Nucleosil 50-5-C₈ column with acetonitrile-water (34:66) as mobile phase is the most suitable chromatographic system and leads to the best resolution between heptakis (2,6-di-O-methyl)-β-CD and hexakis (2,6-di-O-methyl)-mono(2,3,6-tri-O-methyl)-β-CD (14 OCH₃ and 15 OCH₃). This chromatographic system might enable an LC-MS coupling for direct identification of the different components in the mixture as well as control of batch to batch variations.     

LnCl3(cat.)/Zn promoted hydroperfluoroalkylation of αβ - unsaturated esters with perfluoroalkyl iodides

LnCl₃(cat.)/Zn system has been found to cause hydroperfluoro-alkylation of α,β - unsaturated esters with perfluoroalkyl iodides in high yields as compared with the reaction with Zn alone.     

Luminescence de l'europium divalent dans les composés α- et β-RbLu3F10

The effect of the crystal structure upon the luminescence of the divalent europium within the RbLu₃F₁₀ dimorphous matrix has been investigated. The obtained results essentially show that the difference between the rubidium coordination numbers in both α- and β-RbLu₃F₁₀ phases (15 or 16 and 8 or 10 respectively) is responsible for the change over from a 4f⁷ → 4f⁷ emission to a 4f⁶5d¹ → 4f⁷ emission.     

Synthesis and structure of the unsymmetrical β-diimine precursor: The β-iminoamine

The reaction of benzoylacetone with ortho-substituted aniline derivatives gives the unsymmetrical β-iminoamine ligands (5–8) with high yields. A convenient synthesis is described. These compounds have been characterized by NMR and IR spectroscopies. The structure of the β-iminoamine 5, 3-N-(2,6-diisopropylphenylamino)-1-phenyl-1N-(2,6-diisopropylphenylimino)but-2-ene, was solved by X-ray diffraction methods.     

Influence of substituted groups on the binding ability of benzoyl-modified β-cyclodextrins

A series of substituted benzoyl modified β-cyclodextrins, including mono-6-O-(p-methylbenzoyl)-β-CD (1), mono-6-O-(m-methylbenzoyl)-β-CD (2), mono-6-O-(o-methylbenzoyl)-β-CD (3), mono-6-O-(p-methoxylbenzoyl)-β-CD (4), mono-6-O-(m-methoxylbenzoyl)-β-CD (5), mono-6-O-(o-methoxylbenzoyl)-β-CD (6), mono-6-O-(m, p-dimethoxylbenzoyl)]-β-CD (7), mono-6-O-(o,m-dimethoxylbenzoyl)-β-CD (8), and mono-(6-O-benzoyl)-β-CD (9) were synthesized and their inclusion properties were studied by using fluorescence spectroscopy. The binding constants (K_a) of the modified β-CD derivatives with 2-p-toluidinylnaphthalene-6-sulfonate (TNS) were determined on the basis of the fluorescence spectroscopy. The effect of types and location of substituted groups of the benzene ring of the modified β-cyclodextrins on the binding property was discussed. Results indicated that the substituents had significant influences on the binding abilities of modified β-cyclodextrins.     

Resonance Raman spectra of metalloporphyrins. On the methine-bridge vibrations of ferric octaethylporphyrins and its α′, β′, γ′, and δ′ deutero derivatives

Raman spectra of Fe³⁺ and Pd²⁺ octaethylporphyrin (OEP) and their α′, β′, γ′, and δ′ deutero derivatives were measured with the 5145, 4880 and 4765 Å lines of an Ar ion laser. Raman bands due to methine-bridge stretching vibrations were assigned and their vibrational amplitudes were calculated from the observed frequency shifts on deuterium substitution of methine-bridge hydrogens. These vibrations correspond to the spin-state sensitive Raman bands of heme proteins. On the basis of symmetry considerations and the observed polarizations, vibrational assignments of other Raman bands were made.     

β-Lactamase label-based potentiometric biosensor for α-2 interferon detection

An effective immunosensor for α-2 interferon detection based on pH-sensitive field effect transistor (pH-FET) has been developed. A specific sensing element was fabricated by immobilizing α-2 interferon on the gate of a pH-FET. The interaction of anti-interferon antibodies labelled with β-lactamase with interferon–pH-FET (in the presence of specific enzyme substrate) leads to a local pH-change at the surface of transducer and produces an electrochemical signal which is proportional to the conjugate concentration. The main performance characteristics of the sensor obtained (sensitivity, dynamic range, operational and storage stability) were estimated. The effect of pH, buffer concentration and ionic strength on the immunosensor response as well as conditions of immunosensor regeneration were studied. For the determination of the interferon concentration in a sample solution the competitive electrochemical immunoassay has been employed. A linear response of the sensor on α-2 interferon concentration is obtained in the range 10–100 μg/ml. This gives the possibility to detect α-2 interferon in a non-diluted cultivated broth. The data of the competitive electrochemical immunoassay are available within 30 min and are in good accordance with the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays.     

Selected β2-, β3- and β2,3-Amino Acid Heterocyclic Derivatives and Their Biological Perspective

Heterocyclic moieties, especially five and six-membered rings containing nitrogen, oxygen or sulfur atoms, are broadly distributed in nature. Among them, synthetic and natural alike are pharmacologically active compounds and have always been at the forefront of attention due to their pharmacological properties. Heterocycles can be divided into different groups based on the presence of characteristic structural motifs. The presence of β-amino acid and heterocyclic core in one compound is very interesting; additionally, it very often plays a vital role in their biological activity. Usually, such compounds are not considered to be chemicals containing a β-amino acid motif; however, considering them as this class of compounds may open new routes of their preparation and application as new drug precursors or even drugs. The possibility of their application as nonproteinogenic amino acid residues in peptide or peptide derivatives synthesis to prepare a new class of compounds is also promising. This review highlights the actual state of knowledge about β-amino acid moiety-containing heterocycles presenting antiviral, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial compounds, anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitors, as well as agonist and antagonists of the receptors.     

α- and β-cyclodextrin complexes with n-alkyl carboxylic acids and n-alkyl p-hydroxy benzoates. A molecular mechanics study of 1:1 and 1:2 associations

Molecular mechanics (MM) methods were employed to evaluate stabilization upon formation of inclusion compounds between two different guest molecules and α- and β-cyclodextrins (CDs) for two different stoichiometries 1:1 and 1:2. The two guest molecules studied were n-alkyl carboxylic acids and n-alkyl p-hydroxy benzoates with variety of chain lengths. The computed stability for the inclusion compounds between α-CDs and n-alkyl carboxylic acids reproduced experimental data reported in the literature. The transition between 1:1/1:2 complexes occurred at an alkyl chain length of n_C=9. It was previously demonstrated by diffusion coefficients measures that a stable 1:2 stoichiometry inclusion compound could be formed between n-alkyl p-hydroxy benzoates and α-CD for the chain length n_C>4. The computed results reproduced the experimental ones. The combination between OPLS and GB/SA resulted in better agreements with experiments than those obtained with MM2 and MM3.     

Tandem epoxysilane rearrangement/Wittig-type reactions using γ-phosphinoyl- and γ-phosphonio-α,β-epoxysilane

Reaction of γ-phosphinoyl- and γ-phosphonio-α,β-epoxysilane with a base followed by addition of a ketone or an aldehyde afforded dienol silyl ether derivatives via a tandem process that involves base-induced ring opening of the epoxide, Brook rearrangement, and Wittig-type reaction.     

A Comparative Study of the Lipophilicity of Metformin and Phenformin

The results presented in this paper confirm the beneficial role of an easy-to-use and low-cost thin-layer chromatography (TLC) technique for describing the retention behavior and the experimental lipophilicity parameter of two biguanide derivatives, metformin and phenformin, in both normal-phase (NP) and reversed-phase (RP) TLC systems. The retention parameters (R_F, R_M) obtained under different chromatographic conditions, i.e., various stationary and mobile phases in the NP-TLC and RP-TLC systems, were used to determine the lipophilicity parameter (R_MW) of metformin and phenformin. This study confirms the poor lipophilicity of both metformin and phenformin. It can be stated that the optimization of chromatographic conditions, i.e., the kind of stationary phase and the composition of mobile phase, was needed to obtain the reliable value of the chromatographic lipophilicity parameter (R_MW) in this study. The fewer differences in the R_MW values of both biguanide derivatives were ensured by the RP-TLC system composed of RP2, RP18, and RP18W plates and the mixture composed of methanol, propan-1-ol, and acetonitrile as an organic modifier compared to the NP-TLC analysis. The new calculation procedures for logP of drugs based on topological indices ⁰χ^ν, ⁰χ, ¹χ^ν, M, and M^ν may be a certain alternative to other algorithms as well as the TLC procedure performed under optimized chromatographic conditions. The knowledge of different lipophilicity parameters of the studied biguanides can be useful in the future design of novel and more therapeutically effective metformin and phenformin formulations for antidiabetic and possible anticancer treatment. Moreover, the topological indices presented in this work may be further used in the QSAR study of the examined biguanides.