Inter- and intramolecular N-terminal methyl–side chain interactions in N-acetyl-L-glutamic acid oligomeric benzyl ester solutions. 1H NMR study

Oligomeric N-acetyl-L-glutamic acid benzyl esters with exact residue number (2, 3 or 4) have been synthesized by a stepwise procedure. The aggregational behavior of these oligomeric molecules in dioxane and benzene has been investigated by use of ¹H NMR. In particular, the concentration dependence of the ¹H signals for the N-terminal CH₃ protons has provided evidence that an intermolecular CH₃···? interaction plays a critical role in the formation of aggregates and that an intramolecular CH₃···? interaction occurs in the monomolecular state.