Enantioselective chromatography in drug discovery

Development and validation of a novel stability-indicating reverse phase HPLC method for the determination of sacubitril-valsartan premix stereoisomers: Cellulose tris(4-methyl benzoate) stationary phase

A new stability indicating reverse phase HPLC method has been developed, optimized and validated as per International Conference on Harmonization guidelines for the determination of stereoisomers namely (2R)-valsartan, (2S,4S)-sacubitril, (2R,4S)-sacubitril and (2R,4R)-sacubitril in sacubitril-valsartan premix. Primarily, stability indicating separation study was done on reverse phase LC conditions; it was described by peak homogeneity of sacubitril-valsartan and its stereoisomers. Separation achieved on cellulose tris(4-methylbenzoate) packing column Chiralcel OJ-RH(150 mm x 4.6 mm), 5 μm than those of amylose based stationary phase's. Resolution between two arbitrary adjacent analyte was found to be more than 2.0 with 0.1% trifluoroacetic acid in water as mobile phase-A and mobile phase-B consisting of acetonitrile, methanol and trifluoroacetic acid (90:10:0.1 v/v/v). Gradient elution was performed at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min, column temperature 20°C, injection volume 10 μL, UV detection at 254 nm and run time was 52 mins. The detector response found to be linear (R²  ≥ 0.9998), limit of detection (0.290 μg/mL, 0.122 μg/mL, 0.123 μg/mL and 0.124 μg/mL) and limit of quantification (0.878 μg/mL, 0.370 μg/mL, 0.373 μg/mL and 0.375 μg/mL), respectively. Percentage recovery found to be 98-105. Finally, the proposed method is user-friendly and can be used in bulk drugs analysis. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Progress in Chiral Stationary Phases Based on Proteins and Glycoproteins

A lot of chiral stationary phases (CSPs) have been introduced for the purpose of analytical and preparative separations of enantiomers. CSPs based on proteins and glycoproteins have unique properties among those CSPs. This review article deals with the preparation of CSPs based on proteins and glycoproteins, their chiral recognition properties and mechanisms, focusing on the CSPs investigated in our group. The dealt proteins and glycoproteins are including bovine serum albumin, human serum albumin, lysozyme, pepsin, human α₁-acid glycoprotein (AGP), chicken ovomucoid and chicken ovoglycoprotein (named chicken AGP).

Crystalline State Hydrogen Bonding of 2-(2-Hydroxybenzylidene)Thiazolo[3,2-a]Pyrimidines: A Way to Non-Centrosymmetric Crystals

Thiazolopyrimidines are attractive to medical chemists as new antitumor agents due to their high inhibiting activity towards the tumor cells replication process and easy modification of their structure by varying of the number and nature of substituents. The presence of asymmetric C5 carbon atoms requires the development of racemic mixture separation procedures for these heterocycles. One of the more effective ways is the crystallization of a racemic compound as a conglomerate. A prerequisite for such separation is the formation of non-centrosymmetric crystals presenting Sohncke space groups. For the construction of chiral supramolecular ensembles in a crystalline state, hydrogen bonds were chosen as supramolecular synthons. In this context, salicylic derivatives at the C2 atom of thiazolopyrimidines were synthesized. The crystal structures of the obtained compounds were established by SCXRD. The regularities of the solvent’s influence on the crystal packaging were revealed. The conditions for the preparation of crystals with the chiral space group due to intermolecular hydrogen bonds were discovered.

A novel stability-indicating HPLC method for the determination of enantiomeric purity of eluxadoline drug: Amylose tris(3,5-dichlorophenyl carbamate) stationary phase

A simple and sensitive stability-indicating chiral HPLC method has been developed and validated per International Conference on Harmonization guidelines for the determination of enantiomeric purity of eluxadoline (Exdl). The impact of different mobile phase compositions and chiral stationary phases on the separation of Exdl enantiomer along with process- and degradation-related impurities has been studied. Homogeneity of Exdl and stable results of Exdl enantiomer in all degraded samples reveal the fact that the proposed method was specific (stability indicating). Amylose tris(3,5-dichlorophenyl carbamate) stationary phase column Chiralpak IE-3 (150 × 4.6 mm, 3 μm) provided better resolution with polar organic solvents than cellulose derivative, crown ether, and zwitterion stationary phases and nonpolar solvents. The mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile, tetrahydrofuran, methanol, butylamine, and acetic acid in the ratio of 500:500:20:2:1.5 (v/v/v/v/v). Isocratic elution was performed at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min, column temperature of 35°C, injection volume of 10 μL, and UV detection of 240 nm. The United States Pharmacopeia (USP) resolution of the Exdl enantiomer was found to be more than 4.0 within a 65-min run time. Exdl enantiomer detector response linearity over the concentration range of 0.859-4.524 μg/mL was found to be R²  = 0.9985. The limit of detection, limit of quantification, and average percentage recovery values were established as 0.283 μg/mL, 0.859 μg/mL, and 96.0, respectively.

Progress in the Enantioseparation of β-Blockers by Chromatographic Methods

β-adrenergic antagonists (β-blockers) with at least one chiral center are an exceedingly important class of drugs used mostly to treat cardiovascular diseases. At least 70 β-blockers have been investigated in history. However, only a few β-blockers, e.g., timolol, are clinically marketed as an optically pure enantiomer. Therefore, the separation of racemates of β-blockers is essential both in the laboratory and industry. Many approaches have been explored to obtain the single enantiomeric β-blocker, including high performance liquid chromatography, supercritical fluid chromatography and simulated moving bed chromatography. In this article, a review is presented on different chromatographic methods applied for the enantioseparation of β-blockers, covering high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) and simulated moving bed chromatography (SMB).

Chiral chromatography method screening strategies: Past, present and future

Method screening is an integral part of chromatographic method development for the separation of racemates. Due to the highly complex retention mechanism of a chiral stationary-phase, it is often difficult, if not impossible, to device predefined method-development steps that can be successfully applied to a wide group of molecules. The standard approach is to evaluate or screen a series of stationary and mobile-phase combinations to increase the chances of detecting a suitable separation condition. Such a process is often the rate-limiting step for high-throughput analyses and purification workflows. To address the problem, several solutions and strategies have been proposed over the years for reduction of net method-screening time. Some of the strategies have been adopted in practice while others remained confined in the literature. The main objective of this review is to revisit, critically discuss and compile the solutions published over the last two decades. We expect that making the diverse set of solutions available in a single document will help assessing the adequacy of existing screening protocols in laboratories conducting chiral separation.

A preparative chiral separation of hydroxychloroquine using supercritical fluid chromatography

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Robust SFC preparative method for the separation of the enantiomers of hydroxychloroquine.

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drug repurposing: treatment for Covid-19 caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection.

A robust supercritical chromatography (SFC) method using an Enantiocel C2–5 column was developed for the multigram separation of the enantiomers of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), affirming its use as a scalable technology and ability to provide quantities of each enantiomer for clinical evaluation. The enantiomers of HCQ were collected on a gram scale with greater than 99% enantiomeric excess. The S and R enantiomer elution order was confirmed using optical rotation determinations with comparison to previously determined assignments.

Chiral Separations in Preparative Scale: A Medicinal Chemistry Point of View

Enantiomeric separation is a key step in the development of a new chiral drug. Preparative liquid chromatography (LC) continues to be the technique of choice either during the drug discovery process, to achieve a few milligrams, or to a scale-up during the clinical trial, needing kilograms of material. However, in the last few years, instrumental and technical developments allowed an exponential increase of preparative enantioseparation using other techniques. Besides LC, supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) and counter-current chromatography (CCC) have aroused interest for preparative chiral separation. This overview will highlight the importance to scale-up chiral separations in Medicinal Chemistry, especially in the early stages of the pipeline of drugs discovery and development. Few examples within different methodologies will be selected, emphasizing the trends in chiral preparative separation. The advantages and drawbacks will be critically discussed.

Defining a system suitability limit to decide on column deterioration and to facilitate column transfers in chiral supercritical fluid chromatography

The separation of enantiomers is an important requirement during the entire drug life cycle in the pharmaceutical industry. High-performance liquid chromatography and supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) are the main chromatographic techniques used to separate enantiomers. Since chiral stationary phases are often extensively used once a method has been developed, columns will age and must be replaced after a certain period. However, no practical guidelines exist to determine when a column is deteriorated or to decide whether a transfer to another column (with the same chiral selector) is successful. In this study, a system suitability limit for resolution was defined, based on an intermediate (time-different) precision study in SFC on four immobilized polysaccharide-based columns that only differed in manufacturer or particle size. This system suitability limit could be used to decide on column deterioration or as a requirement to evaluate whether a separation transfer was successful. Some method adaptations may be necessary to obtain successful transfers. An approach was proposed, which helped the analyst to make successful transfers. Graphical abstract.

Some thoughts about enantioseparations in capillary electrophoresis

In this overview the goal of the authors was to analyze from the historical perspective the reasons of success and failure of chiral capillary electrophoresis. In addition, the current trends are analyzed, unique advantages of capillary electrophoresis are highlighted and some future directions are discussed.

Evaluation of polysaccharide-based chiral stationary phases in modern SFC-MS/MS for enantioselective bioanalysis

Aim: The applicability of polysaccharide-based chiral stationary phases in modern supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC)-MS/MS for chiral bioanalysis was evaluated. Materials & methods: Ten popular polysaccharide-based chiral stationary phases (CSPs) were tested using a set of 23 drugs against three cosolvents. The effect of temperature and backpressure on separation was examined. Results: The recommended order of CSPs for screening was determined. Methanol with 0.1% NH₄OH is proven to be the first choice of cosolvent. Temperature of 40°C and backpressure of 10 or 15 MPa are recommended starting conditions. Phospholipid elution profiles on the polysaccharide-based CSPs were reported for the first time under SFC conditions. Conclusion: A simplified screening protocol with straightforward method optimization approaches was generated for SFC chiral assay development in a reasonable time frame with a high success rate.

A new stability indicating reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography method for the determination of enantiomeric purity of a DPP-4 inhibitor drug linagliptin

A simple, sensitive, and stability indicating isocratic reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography method has been developed, optimized and validated for the separation and quantification of S-enantiomer in linagliptin (R-enantiomer) drug substance. Enantiomeric separation was achieved on a Cellulose tris(4-chloro-3-methylphenylcarbamate) stationary phase. Mobile phase consists of aqueous diammonium hydrogen phosphate buffer and acetonitrile in the ratio of 35:65 v/v. Isocratic elution was performed at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min, the column oven temperature was set at 40°C and detection was at 226 nm. The resolution between R and S enantiomers is found to be more than 4.0. The impact of mobile phase composition, pH of buffer and temperature on the resolution has been studied. The detector response is found to be linear over the concentration range of 0.17-1.7 μg/mL. LOD and LOQ levels of S-enantiomer are found to be 0.057 and 0.172 μg/mL respectively. The recovery of S-enantiomer is 99.8% w/w. The proposed method is validated for specificity, precision, linearity, accuracy and robustness.

Enantiomeric NMR discrimination of carboxylic acids using actinomycin D as a chiral solvating agent

We extended actinomycin D as a practical CSA for rapid enantiomeric determination of chiral carboxylic acids by¹H NMR spectroscopy.

The Importance of Solvent Effects on the Mechanism of the Pfeiffer Effect

The Pfeiffer effect is observed when an optically active compound such as an amino acid is introduced to a solution containing a labile racemic metal complex, and an equilibrium shift is obtained. The "perturbation" results in an excess of one enantiomer over the other. The shift is a result of a preferential outer sphere interaction between the introduced chiral species and one enantiomeric form (Λ or Δ) of a labile metal complex. Speculations regarding the mechanism of the Pfeiffer effect have attributed observations to a singular factor such as pH, solvent polarity, or numerous other intermolecular interactions. Through the use of the lanthanide(III) complexes [Tb(DPA)3]3- and [Eu(DPA)3]3- (where DPA = 2,6-pyridinedicarboxylate) and the amino acids l-serine and l-proline; it is becoming clear that the mechanism is not so simply described as per the preliminary findings that are discussed in this study. It appears that the true mechanism is far more complicated than the attribute just a singular factor. This work attempts to shine light on the fact that understanding the behavior of the solvent environment may hypothetically be the key to offering a more detailed description of the mechanism.

Separation of enantiomers by their enantiospecific interaction with achiral magnetic substrates

It is commonly assumed that recognition and discrimination of chirality, both in nature and in artificial systems, depend solely on spatial effects. However, recent studies have suggested that charge redistribution in chiral molecules manifests an enantiospecific preference in electron spin orientation. We therefore reasoned that the induced spin polarization may affect enantiorecognition through exchange interactions. Here we show experimentally that the interaction of chiral molecules with a perpendicularly magnetized substrate is enantiospecific. Thus, one enantiomer adsorbs preferentially when the magnetic dipole is pointing up, whereas the other adsorbs faster for the opposite alignment of the magnetization. The interaction is not controlled by the magnetic field per se, but rather by the electron spin orientations, and opens prospects for a distinct approach to enantiomeric separations.

Enantiomer surface chemistry: conglomerate versus racemate formation on surfaces

Research on surface chirality is motivated by the need to develop functional chiral surfaces for enantiospecific applications. While molecular chirality in 3D has been the subject of study for almost two centuries, many aspects of 2D chiral surface chemistry have yet to be addressed. In 3D, racemic mixtures of chiral molecules tend to aggregate into racemate (molecularly heterochiral) crystals much more frequently than conglomerate (molecularly homochiral) crystals. Whether chiral adsorbates on surfaces preferentially aggregate into heterochiral rather than homochiral domains (2D crystals or clusters) is not known. In this review, we have made the first attempt to answer the following question based on available data: in 2D racemic mixtures adsorbed on surfaces, is there a clear preference for homochiral or heterochiral aggregation? The current hypothesis is that homochiral packing is preferred on surfaces; in contrast to 3D where heterochiral packing is more common. In this review, we present a simple hierarchical scheme to categorize the chirality of adsorbate-surface systems. We then review the body of work using scanning tunneling microscopy predominantly to study aggregation of racemic adsorbates. Our analysis of the existing literature suggests that there is no clear evidence of any preference for either homochiral or heterochiral aggregation at the molecular level by chiral and prochiral adsorbates on surfaces.

Synthesis and evaluation of pseudopeptide chiral stationary phases for enantioselective resolution

Poly(2-oxazoline)s are regarded as bioinspired polymers due to their structural relation to polypeptides. In this work, a new kind of poly(2-oxazoline)s containing dipeptide segments in the side chains was synthesized through a bottom-up protocol, which involves ring-opening copolymerization of 2-(N-Boc-l-2-pyrrolidinyl)-2-oxazoline (PyOX_Boc) with 2-(3-butenyl)-2-oxazoline (BuOX) followed by deprotection and amide coupling with N-protected L-proline. The resulting vinyl-functionalized polymers were subsequently immobilized onto mercaptopropylated silica bead matrices by means of thio-click chemistry and their potential as the chiral stationary phase (CSP) for high-performance liquid chromatography was preliminarily evaluated with a series of structurally different racemates. The results showed that this class of pseudopeptide CSPs is particularly adapted to the enantiomeric separation of 1,1'-bi-2-naphthol and acyloin compounds (such as benzoin) under normal-phase conditions. Moreover, an increase in the length of polymer main chains is beneficial to the enhancement of both enantioselectivity and resolution ability. The chiral discrimination of analytes by the polymeric selectors stems primarily from hydrogen bonding and π-π interactions as well as steric hindrance.

Functionalities tuned enantioselectivity of phenylcarbamate cyclodextrin clicked chiral stationary phases in HPLC

The mixed chloro- and methyl- functionalities can greatly modulate the enantioselectivities of phenylcarbamate cyclodextrin (CD) clicked chiral stationary phases (CSPs). A comparison study is herein reported for per(4-chloro-3-methyl)phenylcarbamate and per(2-chloro-5-methyl)phenylcarbamate β-CD clicked CSPs (i.e., CCC4M3-CSP and CCC2M5-CSP). The enantioselectivity dependence on column temperature was studied in both normal-phase and reversed-phase mode high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The thermodynamic study revealed that the stronger intermolecular interactions can be formed between CCC4M3-CSP and chiral solutes to drive the chiral separation. The higher enantioselectivities of CCC4M3-CSP were further demonstrated with the enantioseparation of 17 model racemates in HPLC.

Chromatographic Studies of Protein-Based Chiral Separations

The development of separation methods for the analysis and resolution of chiral drugs and solutes has been an area of ongoing interest in pharmaceutical research. The use of proteins as chiral binding agents in high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) has been an approach that has received particular attention in such work. This report provides an overview of proteins that have been used as binding agents to create chiral stationary phases (CSPs) and in the use of chromatographic methods to study these materials and protein-based chiral separations. The supports and methods that have been employed to prepare protein-based CSPs will also be discussed and compared. Specific types of CSPs that are considered include those that employ serum transport proteins (e.g., human serum albumin, bovine serum albumin, and alpha1-acid glycoprotein), enzymes (e.g., penicillin G acylase, cellobiohydrolases, and α-chymotrypsin) or other types of proteins (e.g., ovomucoid, antibodies, and avidin or streptavidin). The properties and applications for each type of protein and CSP will also be discussed in terms of their use in chromatography and chiral separations.

Preparation of Two New Diasteromeric Chiral Stationary Phases Based on (+)-(18-Crown-6)-2,3,11,12-tetracarboxylic Acid and (R)- or (S)-1-(1-Naphthyl)ethylamine and Chiral Tethering Group Effect on the Chiral Recognition

Two new diastereomeric chiral stationary phases (CSPs) based on (+)-(18-crown-6)-2,3,11,12-tetracarboxylic acid as a chiral tethering group and a Π-basic chiral unit such as (R)-1-(1-naphthyl)ethylamine (CSP 1) or (S)-1-(1-naphthyl)ethylamine (CSP 2) were prepared. The two CSPs were applied to the enantiomeric separation of N-(3,5-dinitrobenzoyl)-1-phenylalkylamines and N-(3,5-dinitrobenzoyl)-α-amino acid derivatives using 20% isopropyl alcohol in hexane as a normal mobile phase. To elucidate the effect of the two chiral units on the chiral recognition, the chiral recognition abilities of the two CSPs were compared with each other and with that of a CSP (CSP 3) based on (R)-1-(1-naphthyl)ethylamine. From the chromatographic chiral recognition results, (R)-1-(1-naphthyl)ethylamine and (+)−(18-crown-6)-2,3,11,12-tetracarboxylic acid constituting CSP 1 were concluded to show a cooperative (“matched”) effect on the chiral recognition while (S)-1-(1-naphthyl)ethylamine and (+)-(18-crown-6)-2,3,11,12-tetracarboxylic acid constituting CSP 2 were concluded to show an uncooperative (“mismatched”) effect on the chiral recognition. From these results, it was concluded that (+)-(18-crown-6)-2,3,11,12-tetracarboxylic acid can be successfully used as a chiral tethering group for the preparation of new CSPs.

Self-referenced, microdegree, optical rotation polarimeter for biomedical applications: an analysis

We comprehensively analyze the performance of a type of optical rotation (OR) polarimeter, which has been designed from the outset to fit the special requirements of two major applications: general chiral detection during the separation of optical isomers by high-pressure liquid chromatography systems in the pharmaceutical industry, and monitoring of glucose in the interstitial fluid of diabetics by a fully implanted long-term optical sensor. Both very demanding applications call for an OR polarimeter that can be miniaturized while maintaining high resolution and accuracy in the microdegree range in the face of considerable noise from various sources. These two characteristics—miniature size and immunity to noise—set this polarimeter apart from the traditional OR polarimeters currently in use, which are both bulky and very susceptible to noise. The following detailed analysis demonstrates the advantages of this polarimeter and its potential as an analytic and diagnostic tool.

Enantioseparations of pharmaceuticals with capillary electrochromatography: A review

The chiral separation of pharmaceuticals is one of the major research topics in the pharmaceutical industry. Chromatographic techniques are most frequently used in this context. Separations in capillary electrochromatography (CEC) are an alternative and achieved by chromatographic retention and electrophoretic mobility principles. As a result, CEC is characterized by a high selectivity and efficiency. The limited number of stationary phases specifically developed for CEC, the low number of commercially available CEC columns, the frits to maintain the stationary phase, which forms fragile spots in the columns, and the limited column robustness and reproducibility, make CEC not very attractive for industrial application. However, CEC is still applied and studied in the academic field. This review discusses the enantioseparation of drugs in CEC published during the last four years, with a critical view on the reproducibility and the practical utility of these applications.

Localizing Perturbations of the Racemic Equilibria Involving Dipicolinate-Derived Lanthanide(III) Complexes

Helical D3 tris(4-amino-2,6-pyridine-dicarboxylate)terbium(III) and europium(III) complexes, which form a racemic equilibrium in aqueous solution, were prepared to study their secondary coordination sphere interactions with chiral amino acids. These interactions were probed using a combination of circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) and 13C NMR spectroscopy. The results indicate that, regardless of the interaction between the chiral molecule and the complex, without an accessible hydrogen-bond donor on the associating molecule, perturbation of the racemic equilibrium cannot occur. A generalized conclusion is established that indicates that the mechanism of chiral recognition by tris(dipicolinate)lanthanide(III) complexes is similar across a variety of analogous ligands.

Liquid chromatographic resolution of amino acid esters of acyclovir including racemic valacyclovir on crown ether-based chiral stationary phases

Valacyclovir, a potential prodrug for the treatment of patients with herpes simplex and herpes zoster, and its analogs were resolved on two chiral stationary phases (CSPs) based on (3,3'-diphenyl-1,1'-binaphthyl)-20-crown-6 covalently bonded to silica gel. In order to find out an appropriate mobile phase condition, various mobile phases consisting of various organic modifiers in water containing various acidic modifiers were applied to the resolution of valacyclovir and its analogs. When 30% acetonitrile in water containing any of 0.05 M, 0.10 M, or 0.15 M perchloric acid was used as a mobile phase, valacyclovir and its analogs were resolved quite well on the two CSPs with the separation factors (α) in the range of 2.49 ~ 6.35 and resolutions (RS ) in the range of 2.95 ~ 12.21. Between the two CSPs, the CSP containing residual silanol protecting n-octyl groups on the silica surface was found to be better than the CSP containing residual silanol groups.

Liquid chromatographic resolution of fendiline and its analogues on a chiral stationary phase based on (+)-(18-crown-6)-2,3,11,12-tetracarboxylic acid

Fendiline, an effective anti-anginal drug for the treatment of coronary heart diseases, and its sixteen analogues were resolved on a CSP based on (+)-(18-crown-6)-2,3,11,12-tetracarboxylic acid. Fendiline was resolved quite well with the separation factor (α) of 1.25 and resolution (RS) of 1.55 when a mobile phase consisting of methanol-acetonitrile-trifluoroacetic acid-triethylamine at a ratio of 80/20/0.1/0.5 (v/v/v/v) was used. The comparison of the chromatographic behaviors for the resolution of fendiline and its analogues indicated that the 3,3-diphenylpropyl group bonded to the secondary amino group of fendiline is important in the chiral recognition and the difference in the steric bulkiness between the phenyl group and the methyl group at the chiral center of fendiline is also important in the chiral recognition.