A screening method for chiral selectors that does not require covalent attachment

The Reciprocal Principle of Selectand-Selector-Systems in Supramolecular Chromatography †

In selective chromatography and electromigration methods, supramolecular recognition of selectands and selectors is due to the fast and reversible formation of association complexes governed by thermodynamics. Whereas the selectand molecules to be separated are always present in the mobile phase, the selector employed for the separation of the selectands is either part of the stationary phase or is added to the mobile phase. By the reciprocal principle, the roles of selector and selectand can be reversed. In this contribution in honor of Professor Stig Allenmark, the evolution of the reciprocal principle in chromatography is reviewed and its advantages and limitations are outlined. Various reciprocal scenarios, including library approaches, are discussed in efforts to optimize selectivity in separation science.

Lipophilicity screening of novel drug-like compounds and comparison to clog P

We determined the distribution coefficients of solutes between a polymer film phase (polyvinyl chloride (PVC) with 67% (w/w) dioctyl sebacate (DOS)) and an aqueous phase in a 96-well format. The parallel measurement approach is efficient and uses very little material. Polymer-water distribution coefficients (D(pw)) at different pH values yield the pKa and polymer-water partition coefficient values (P(pw)) of the solutes. log P(pw) of a prominent drug-like compound, 2H-1,2,6-thiadiazine, 3-methyl-5-phenyl-,1,1-dioxide, is in good agreement with clog P, while the pK(a) value is substantially different from calculated values. This method has been also successfully applied to a library of novel drug-like compounds. log D(pw) values (at pH 4.0, 7.0, 10.0) of 24 novel drug-like compounds have been determined with good reproducibility with the 96-well plate approach. Differences between experimental values and a variety of available calculated values are significant. This emphasizes the need for laboratory separations-based measurements of log D.

Peptide-Like Molecules (PLMs): A Journey from Peptide Bond Isosteres to Gramicidin S Mimetics and Mitochondrial Targeting Agents

Peptides are natural ligands and substrates for receptors and enzymes and exhibit broad physiological effects. However, their use as therapeutic agents often suffers from poor bioavailability and insufficient membrane permeability. The success of peptide mimicry hinges on the ability of bioisosteres, in particular peptide bond replacements, to adopt suitable secondary structures relevant to peptide strands and position functional groups in equivalent space. This perspective highlights past and ongoing studies in our group that involve new methods development as well as specific synthetic library preparations and applications in chemical biology, with the goal to enhance the use of alkene and cyclopropane peptide bond isosteres.

High-throughput phase-distribution method to determine drug-cyclodextrin binding constants

A high-throughput method has been developed to measure drug-cyclodextrin binding constants. It measures the distribution ratio of a drug between a polymer film [polyvinyl chloride (PVC) with 67% (w/w) dioctyl sebacate (DOS)] and a cyclodextrin-containing buffer in a 96-well format. Measurements of distribution ratios at several cyclodextrin concentrations lead to binding constants. Binding constants for econazole with six CDs have been determined in one 96-well microplate with four replications of each condition in 10 h. The K(1:1)/10(3) M(-1) values are 3.98 +/- 0.13, 3.90 +/- 0.22, 29.3 +/- 2.2, 0.66 +/- 0.04, 1.78 +/- 0.30, 4.08 +/- 0.50, with (2-hydroxyethyl)-beta-cyclodextrin, (2-hydroxypropyl)-beta-cyclodextrin, 2,6-di-O-methyl-beta-cyclodextrin, heptakis(2,3,6-tri-O-methyl)-beta-cyclodextrin, alpha-cyclodextrin, beta-cyclodextrin, respectively. It is likely that 1:2 complexes are also formed in some cases. This method has also been applied to study the binding behavior as a function of the drug concentration and pH. Binding weakens at higher drug concentration which may be due to the self-association of the drug. An acidic environment decreases the binding constant of CD with the basic econazole. The formation of the 1:2 complexes is completely suppressed in acid as well. This protocol is faster than the phase-solubility method. Moreover, the material requirement is up to four orders of magnitude lower.

Determination of binding constants by affinity capillary electrophoresis, electrospray ionization mass spectrometry and phase-distribution methods

Many methods for determining intermolecular interactions have been described in the literature in the past several decades. Chief among them are methods based on spectroscopic changes, particularly those based on absorption or nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) [especially proton NMR ((1)H NMR)]. Recently, there have been put forward several new methods that are particularly adaptable, use very small quantities of material, and do not place severe requirements on the spectroscopic properties of the binding partners. This review covers new developments in affinity capillary electrophoresis, electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) and phasetransfer methods.

High-throughput method for lipophilicity measurement

A high-throughput method has been developed for lipophilicity measurement. It measures the partition coefficient of a solute between a polymer phase and an aqueous phase (Ppw) in a 96-well format. The polymer is plasticized poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC), which is widely used as a material for clinical containers and ion-selective electrodes. The composition is 2:1 (w/w) dioctyl sebacate and PVC. With six repeats, log Ppw values of 15 solutes have been determined in one 96-well microplate in 4 h. A linear relationship between log Ppw and log Pow (octanol-water partition coefficient) values exists with a correlation coefficient of 0.979. The slope and intercept of the log Ppw vs log Pow plot are statistically indistinguishable from 1 and 0, respectively. Similar to the HPLC method, by using the correlation line as a calibration curve, the measured log Ppw values can be used to predict log Pow. This protocol is faster than the HPLC method. Moreover, it is straightforward to extend the protocol to the determination of the distribution coefficient and pKa of charged solutes. We show that the log Ppw of the neutral form of racemic econazole is 4.83(+/-0.06), for the cationic form (presumably as a dihydrogen phosphate ion pair) 1.68(+/-0.04), and the pKa is 6.15(+/-0.04). This method has great flexibility as well and is potentially fully automated.