On the nature of the anhydride of the lactam of guanidinoglutaric acid

When glutamic acid is amidinated, guanidinoglutaric acid is formed. This is readily converted by boiling in water to its lactam [2-imino-4-oxo-5-(3′-propane acid) imidazolidine; GGAL]. In the present study GGAL is dehydrated to form a second lactam, anhydro-GGAL (AGGAL), with trifluoroacetic anhydride. The molecular weight of this compound was ascertained gravimetrically by precipitation with flavianic acid and by mass spectrography to be 153.14. UV and infrared spectra and hydrogen and ¹³C NMR studies determined its structure as an imidazolidine ring fused to a pyrrol ring, 2-imino-4-oxo-imidazolidine-1,5-pyrrolidone-8. On paper electrophoresis, GGAL traveled to the anode, while AGGAL traveled to the cathode. On TLC plates (butanol 60, H₂O 25, acetic 15), the R_f value of GGAL was 0.42 and that of AGGAL was 0.38, confirming that AGGAL was more basic than GGAL. The preparation of 1,3-di-(phenylcarbamoyl)-GGAL is also described.