Unified Equation for Access to Rate Constants of First-Order Reactions in Dynamic and On-Column Reaction Chromatography

The stereodynamics of 1,2-dipropyldiaziridines

N-alkylated trans-diaziridines are an intriguing class of compounds with two stereogenic nitrogen atoms which easily interconvert. In the course of our investigations of the nature of the interconversion process via nitrogen inversion or electrocyclic ring opening ring closure, we synthesized and characterized the three constitutionally isomeric diaziridines 1,2-di-n-propyldiaziridine 1, 1-isopropyl-2-n-propyldiaziridine 2, and 1,2-diisopropyldiaziridine 3 to study the influence of the substituents on the interconversion barriers. Enantiomer separation was achieved by enantioselective gas chromatography on the chiral stationary phase Chirasil-beta-Dex with high separation factors alpha (1-isopropyl-2-n-propyldiaziridine: 1.18; 1, 2-diisopropyldiaziridine: 1.24; 100 degrees C 50 kPa He) for the isopropyl substituted diaziridines. These compounds showed pronounced plateau formation between 100 and 150 degrees C, and peak coalescence at elevated temperatures. The enantiomerization barriers DeltaG(double dagger) and activation parameters DeltaH(double dagger) and DeltaS(double dagger) were determined by enantioselective dynamic gas chromatography (DGC) and direct evaluation of the elution profiles using the unified equation implemented in the software DCXplorer. Interestingly, 1-isopropyl-2-n-propyldiaziridine and 1,2-diisopropyldiaziridine exhibit similar high interconversion barriers DeltaG(double dagger) (100 degrees C) of 128.3 +/- 0.4 kJ mol(-1) and 129.8 +/- 0.4 kJ mol(-1), respectively, which indicates that two sterically demanding substituents do not substantially increase the barrier as expected for a distinct nitrogen inversion process.

Synthesis, structural analysis, and chiral investigations of some atropisomers with EE-tetrahalogeno-1,3-butadiene core

The atropenantiomers of stable 1,2,3,4-tetrahalo-1,3-butadiene derivatives (where halogeno stands for bromine or iodine) were separated with use of chiral HPLC. The barriers for the enantiomerization process were determined on-line by dynamic HPLC (DHPLC) or off-line by classical kinetic measurements. In the case of the tetrachloro compound, the barrier was too low for DHPLC and its value was obtained by dynamic NMR experiments. The obtained barriers for chloro, bromo, and iodo derivatives correlate with the van der Waals radii of the halogens. The absolute configuration of the isolated enantiomers of the tetraiodo and tetrabromo compounds was assigned by comparison of the experimental and conformations averaged calculated VCD spectra. The identification of a signature band of the absolute configuration of the butadiene core, the sign and location of which are independent from the different conformations and substituents, allowing the safe assignment of the absolute configuration of the enantiomers of chiral 1,3-butadienes, is also reported.

Stereodynamic investigation of labile stereogenic centres in dihydroartemisinin

Since its identification in the early 1970s, artemisinin, as well as semi-synthetic derivatives and synthetic trioxanes, have been used in malaria therapy. Reduction of artemisinin by NaBH4 produced dihydroartemisinin (DHA), and yielded a new stereochemically labile centre at C-10, which, in turn, provided two interconverting lactol hemiacetal epimers (namely alpha and beta), whose rate of interconversion depends on buffer, pH, and solvent polarity. Since interconversion of the two epimers occurred on a chromatographic time-scale, this prompted a thorough investigation of the phenomenon as a crucial requisite of any analytical method aimed at quantitating this family of drugs. In this critical review we discuss the current importance of the on-column epimerization of DHA in the development of analytical methods aimed at quantifying the drug, with the purpose of identifying the optimal conditions to minimize on-column epimerization while achieving the best selectivity and efficiency of the overall separation.

Elaborate treatment of retention in chemoselective chromatography--the retention increment approach and non-linear effects

The retention increment approach is described which quantifies the association equilibria of a selectand and a selector in complexation and inclusion chromatography. A thermodynamic treatment of enantioselectivity based on retention phenomena in chromatography including entropy/enthalpy compensation and the isoenantioselective temperature is advanced. Kinetic parameters of enantiomerization are discussed. Non-linear effects, both existent and elusive, are described and proposed, respectively. The enantioselectivity pertaining to catalysis vs. chromatography is compared and a unified nomenclature is proposed. Through an educational effort, this account is aimed at providing a deeper insight into chemoselective aspects of chromatography thereby stimulating further research of both established and speculative phenomena of the most intriguing manifestation of chemoselectivity, that is, of enantioselectivity.

Gas chromatographic high-throughput screening techniques in catalysis

Discovering highly efficient catalysts is of great scientific and economical interest. Advances in high-throughput assays in combination with sophisticated analytical techniques have increased the rapidity with which catalysts can be identified and optimized. Understanding how kinetics in the mechanism of catalysis is controlled by structural parameters is essential for a directed design of catalysts. To identify such rate-controlling elementary steps and to develop and refine models, comprehensive experimental kinetic data of a broad variety of substrates are necessary. In the present article concepts of high-throughput screening techniques in catalysis using gas chromatography are reviewed in a survey covering the period from 1998 to 2007. To cover also the origins of concepts and groundbreaking experiments in this research area milestones going back to 1950 are also reviewed. The first part of the review will focus on off-line gas chromatographic analysis, the second part on on-line gas chromatographic analysis covering sequential, parallelized and high-throughput multiplexing gas chromatography. The third part presents recent advances in the integration of chemical transformation and analysis in gas chromatography. The present review article describes the state-of-the-art, scope and limitations, and applications of these different high-throughput screening approaches.

Chromatographic elution profile of an analyte involved in reversible chemical reaction of the type A+B↔AB

The chromatographic peak profile of the analyte involved in a chemical reaction of the type A + B <--> AB is considered using method of the apparent adsorption isotherm. The apparent isotherms derived are nonlinear even under assumption of Henry isotherms of individual solutes. Nonlinearity of apparent adsorption isotherm results in peak distortion. The resulted chromatographic peak profile depends on several factors such as the equilibrium constant K(mob) and Henry constants of the solutes. Simulated peak profiles of solutes involved in the chemical reaction are presented as illustration of influence of various factors.

A dynamic molecular probe to investigate catalytic effects and Joule heating in enantioselective MEKC

Enantiomerization of ferroin [tris(1,10-phenanthroline)-iron(II)-complex] was investigated by enantioselective dynamic micellar EKC. The enantiomer separation was performed in an aqueous 50 mM sodium borate/sodium dihydrogenphosphate buffer at pH 8.0 in the presence of the chiral surfactant sodium cholate. The unified equation of dynamic chromatography was employed to determine reaction rate constants from the electropherograms featured with distinct plateau formation. Activation parameters DeltaH( not equal) = 124.0 +/- 0.5 kJ/mol and DeltaS( not equal) = 121 +/- 1 J.K(-1)mol(-1) were calculated from temperature-dependent measurements between 10.0 and 27.5 degrees C in 2.5 K steps. Considering the data obtained by polarimetry of enantiomeric pure ferroin in water, it was found that enantiomerization rate in the micelle is accelerated by a factor of 12. Because of the highly positive activation entropy DeltaS( not equal), ferroin was used as a temperature-sensitive dynamic molecular probe to determine temperature deviations caused by Joule heating.

Polymeric sulfated amino acid surfactants: a class of versatile chiral selectors for micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) and MEKC-MS

In this work, three amino acid-derived (l-leucinol, l-isoleucinol, l-valinol) sulfated chiral surfactants are synthesized and polymerized. These chiral sulfated surfactants are thoroughly characterized to determine critical micelle concentration, aggregation number, polarity, optical rotation, and partial specific volume. For the first time the morphological behavior of polymeric sulfated surfactants is revealed using cryogenic high-resolution electron microscopy. The polysodium N-undecenoyl-l-leucine sulfate shows distinct tubular structure, while polysodium N-undecenoyl-l-valine sulfate also shows tubular morphology but without any distinct order of the tubes. On the other hand, polysodium N-undecenoyl-l-isoleucine sulfate (poly-l-SUCILS) displays random distribution of coiled/curved filaments with heavy association of tightly and loosely bound water. All three polymeric sulfated surfactants are compared for enantioseparation of a broad range of structurally diverse racemic compounds at very acidic, neutral, and basic pH conditions in micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC). A small combinatorial library of 10 structurally related phenylethylamines (PEAs) is investigated for chiral separation under acidic and moderately acidic to neutral pH conditions using an experimental design. In contrast to neutral pH conditions, at acidic pH, significantly enhanced chiral resolution is obtained for class I and class II PEAs due to the compact structure of polymeric sulfated surfactants. It is observed that the presence of a hydroxy group on the benzene ring of PEAs resulted in deterioration of enantioseparation. A sensitive MEKC-mass spectrometry (MS) method is developed for one of the PEAs (e.g., (+/-)-pseudoephedrine) in human urine. Very low limit of detection (LOD) is obtained at pH 2.0 (LOD 325 ng/mL), which is approximately 16 times better compared to pH 8.0 (LOD 5.2 microg/mL). Another broad range of chiral analytes (beta-blockers, phenoxypropionic acid, benzoin derivatives, PTH-amino acids, benzodiazepinones) studied also provided improved chiral separation at low pH compared to high-pH conditions. Among the three polymeric sulfated surfactants, poly-l-SUCILS with two chiral centers on the polymer head group provided overall higher enantioresolution for the investigated acidic, basic, and neutral compounds. This work clearly demonstrates for the first time the superiority of chiral separation and sensitive MS detection at low pH over conventional high-pH chiral separation and detection employing anionic chiral polymeric surfactants in MEKC and MEKC-MS.

Rapid on-column analysis of glucosamine and its mutarotation by microchip capillary electrophoresis

A novel electrophoretic microchip method for analyzing alpha- and beta-d-glucosamine and their interconversion in solution is presented. d-Glucosamine is labeled with fluorescamine and analyzed by capillary electrophoresis in under 2 min revealing its pH-dependent mutarotation between the alpha- and beta-anomers. The forward interconversion rates for the labeled sugars, based on an iterative analysis of the plateau heights between the peaks, are 0.72+/-0.09, 1.3+/-0.1, and 2.2+/-0.3 x 10(-3)s(-1) at pH 8.99, 9.51 and 10.01, respectively. In a separate experiment, the mutarotation of the unlabeled alpha-d-anomer was followed; the relative intensities of the alpha- and beta-peaks as a function of reaction time at pH 9.51 give a forward rate constant of 0.6+/-0.1 x 10(-3)s(-1). These results demonstrate that fast microchip separations, previously exploited for amine, amino acid, and nucleobase analysis, can also be used to analyze amino sugars and their mutarotation.

Bis-ortho-Substitution by Methyl Groups Dramatically Increases the Racemization Barrier of Tröger Bases

We have shown through racemization kinetics studies that the enantiomerization barriers of the bis-ortho-methyl substituted Tröger bases 2 and 3 in acidic media are raised by 30 kJ mol(-1) relative to the parent compound 1, that is 130.4(4) and 131.6(4) kJ mol(-1), respectively (105 degrees C, pH 1, ethylene glycol). The enantiomerization barrier of para-methoxy-para-nitro substituted Tröger base 4 was determined by dynamic capillary electrophoresis to 96.3(2) kJ mol(-1) (25 degrees C, pH 2.2, H(2)O), which is lower by 5 kJ mol(-1) relative to 1. The influence of deutero-substitution on the racemization rates was also studied. The influence of steric and electronic factors on the enantiomerization barrier was investigated by quantum-mechanical (DFT) calculations. It is shown that enantiomerization takes place in two steps: ring-opening and further interconversion of the monocyclic intermediate. For the interconversion to occur a transition state has to be passed which is sensitive to steric effects. Ortho-substitution by methyl groups significantly increases the energy of this state. Thus, compounds 2 and 3 are the simplest Tröger bases which are configurationally stable in acidic media.

The unified equation for the evaluation of degenerated first-order reactions in dynamic electrophoresis

An analytical solution for the unified equation for degenerated (pseudo-) first-order reactions, e.g., enantiomerization processes, in dynamic CE is presented, and validated with a dataset of 31 250 elution profiles covering typical experimental parameters. The unified equation was applied to determine the enantiomerization barrier of the hypnotic glutarimide derivative thalidomide (Contergan(R)) by dynamic capillary electrokinetic chromatography (DEKC). The enantiomer separation of thalidomide was performed in an aqueous 50 mM sodium borate buffer at pH 9.3 in the presence of the chiral mobile phase additive carboxymethyl-beta-CD. Interconversion profiles featuring pronounced plateau formation were observed. Activation parameters DeltaH( not equal) and DeltaS( not equal) were obtained from temperature-dependent measurements between 20.0 and 37.5 degrees C in 2.5K steps. From the activation parameters the enantiomerization barrier of thalidomide at 37 degrees C under basic conditions were calculated to be DeltaG( not equal) = 93.2 kJ/mol. Comparison of the kinetic data with results obtained at pH 8.0 reveals the catalytic influence of the base on the enantiomerization barrier.

Dynamic HPLC on chiral stationary phases: A powerful tool for the investigation of stereomutation processes

Dynamic HPLC on enantioselective stationary phases has become a well-established technique to investigate chiral molecules with internal motions that result in stereoinversion and occur on the time scale of the separation process. Kinetic parameters for the on-column interconversion phenomena can be extracted from experimental peak profiles by computer simulation or by direct calculation methods. The technique has been used in a wide range of temperatures and is complementary in scope to dynamic NMR spectroscopy.

Interconverting Conformations of Variants of the Human Amyloidogenic Protein β2-Microglobulin Quantitatively Characterized by Dynamic Capillary Electrophoresis and Computer Simulation

Capillary electrophoretic separation profiles of cleaved variants of beta2-microglobulin (beta2m) reflect the conformational equilibria existing in solutions of these proteins. The characterization of these equilibria is of interest since beta2m is responsible for amyloid formation in dialysis-related amyloidosis and thus is able to attain alternative conformations that lead to irreversible aggregation and precipitation. In this study, we quantitate the increased conformational instability of cleaved beta2m by extracting rate constants and activation energies by simulating the experimental data using a unified theory for dynamic chromatography and dynamic electrophoresis. The results are correlated with the outcome of independent experiments based on mass spectrometric measurement of H/D exchange. This study illustrates that dynamic capillary electrophoresis is suitable for the investigation of the interconversion of protein conformations of amyloidogenic molecules and is not only restricted to ideal model compounds.

The unified equation for the evaluation of first order reactions in dynamic electrophoresis

The unified equation was validated for first order reactions in dynamic CE with a data set of 31 250 elution profiles. Comparison with the results from conventional iterative computer simulation revealed that the unified equation is superior in terms of success rate and precision. The unified equation was applied to determine the cis-trans isomerization rate constants of the angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor captopril. The separation of the rotational cis-trans isomeric drug has been performed in an aqueous 66 mM citric acid/Tris buffer at pH 3.0 in a 50 cm polyacrylamide-coated fused-silica capillary. Interconversion profiles featuring pronounced plateau formation and peak broadening were observed. Activation parameters DeltaH not equal and DeltaS not equal were obtained from temperature-dependent measurements between 10 and 25 degrees C in 2.5 K steps. From the activation parameters the isomerization barriers of captopril at 37 degrees C under acidic conditions were calculated to be DeltaG not equal trans-->cis=90.6 kJ/mol and DeltaG not equal cis-->trans=84.6 kJ/mol. By comparison of the kinetic data with the results obtained under basic conditions (pH 9.3) a mechanism of isomerization could be proposed.

Fast and precise access to enantiomerization rate constants in dynamic chromatography

An analytical solution of the unified equation to evaluate elution profiles of interconverting enantiomers in dynamic chromatography is presented. Rate constants k1 and k(-1) and Gibbs activation energies are directly obtained from the chromatographic parameters (retention times tR A and tR A of the interconverting enantiomers, the peak widths at half height wA and wB, and the relative plateau height hp), and the initial amounts A0 and B0 of the enantiomers without any iterative and time consuming computational step. Therefore, this equation is no longer limited to racemic analytes. The analytical solution presented here was validated by comparison with a dataset of 125,000 simulated elution profiles of enantiomerizations. Furthermore, it was found that the recovery rate from a defined dataset is on average 40% higher using the unified equation compared to evaluation methods based on iterative computer simulation. The new equation was applied to determine the enantiomerization rate constant of 1-n-butyl-2-tert-butyldiaziridine by enantioselective gas chromatography. The activation parameters (DeltaH(double dagger) = 112.6 +/- 2.5 kJ/mol and DeltaS(double dagger) = -27 +/- 2 J/(K mol) were obtained from temperature-dependent measurements between 100 degrees C and 140 degrees C in 10K steps.