Enantiopure 4- and 5-aminopiperidin-2-ones: regiocontrolled synthesis and conformational characterization as bioactive beta-turn mimetics

Starting from aspartic acid, we synthesized lactam-bridged beta- and gamma-amino acid equivalents. Using the 1,4-bis-electrophile 1b as a central intermediate, the 4- and 5-aminopiperidin-2-ones 4 and 8, respectively, were approached by regioselective functionalization and subsequent lactamization. Diastereoselective C-alkylation was performed after N-protection of the lactam functionality when exclusive trans configuration resulting in the formation of 5a-f was observed in the 4-amino series. On the other hand, cis selectivity was typical for the alkylations of the 5-amino lactams 5a,b. To investigate the ability of the lactam building blocks to induce reverse-turn structures by intramolecular hydrogen bonding, the model peptidomimetics 12 and 14 representing Homo-Freidinger lactams of type II and III were prepared from 4a and 8a, respectively. Conformational analyses in dilute solution (1 mM) by IR and NMR spectroscopy at room temperature clearly indicated that the 4-aminopiperidin-2-one derivative 12 predominantly adopts a reverse-turn structure stabilized by a CO-HN hydrogen bond in an 11-membered ring. VT NMR experiments showed a substantial temperature dependency of the terminal NH when Deltadelta(NH)/DeltaT = -6.5 indicated that the amount of intramolecular hydrogen bonding is higher at low temperature. An application in the field of medicinal chemistry was demonstrated. Thus, starting from the Homo-Freidinger lactam 11c and the enantiomer ent-11c, we synthesized the peptidomimetics 15c and 16c and investigated them as lactam-bridged analogues of the dopamine receptor modulating peptide Pro-Leu-Gly-NH(2) (PLG). Both test compounds turned out to enhance significantly the agonist binding of dopamine D2 receptors, when the isomer 15c revealed a potency comparable to the genuine ligand PLG.     

Collisional depolarization of NO2 fluorescence as studied by Hanle effect measurements

We report on collisional depolarization of NO₂ fluorescence with use of Hanle effect (zero magnetic field level crossing) experiments. Single fine structure levels of NO₂ in several regions of the visible absorption spectrum predominantly near 593 nm and 514 nm are prepared by selective optical excitation and the depolarization of the fluorescence light versus a magnetic field is investigated. We find that the Hanle signal is in general a superposition of two Lorentzian shaped signals, each with a characteristic dependence on light intensity and NO₂ pressure. For NO₂ pressures >1 µ bar the collisional depolarization follows simple Stern-Volmer kinetics. However, an unusual pressure dependence is observed at NO₂ pressures <1 µ bar. In the same pressure range (<1 µ bar) we see also an unexpected resonance with significantly different properties as the Hanle signal.     

Activated alpha-alkyl-alpha-arylacetic acid enantiomers for stereoselective thin-layer chromatographic and high-performance liquid chromatographic determination of chiral amines

The separation of racemic benoxaprofen into the two benoxaprofen enantiomers by preparative high-performance liquid chromatography and the application of the activated enantiomers as derivatization reagents for the simultaneous stereoselective determination of chiral amines in biological material is described. Activated (+)- and (-)-benoxaprofen are both shown to be very sensitive and stable chiral fluorescence markers, applicable to thin-layer chromatography as well as to high-performance liquid chromatography.     

Die Kristallstruktur eines Sulfatkomplexes mit Cyanguanidin und Lupetidin

The crystal structure of a complex prepared from sulfuric acid, cyanoguanidin and lupetidin has been determined by X-ray analysis and refined to R = 0.053. It consists of a sulfate ion, multiply hydrogen bonded to two protonated molecules of lupetidin and a neutral molecule of cyanoguanidin.     

Rydberg fingerprint spectroscopy: a new spectroscopic tool with local and global structural sensitivity

Rydberg spectra are shown to provide a spectral fingerprint that is sensitive to molecular structure in unique ways. The concepts are demonstrated using a set of isomeric fluorophenols and a sequence of aliphatic diamines. In the fluorophenols, the sensitivity extends to the placement of a single hydrogen atom and can be traced to the molecular charge distributions associated with the locations of atoms and functional groups with respect to the charge center. Experiments on tetramethyl diamines demonstrate that the structural sensitivity encompasses the extended molecular structure, including parts of the molecule that are remote from the ionization center. This global structure sensitivity makes Rydberg fingerprint spectroscopy uniquely suited to characterize structures of large-scale molecular systems.