Preparation of racemic 2r-carboxy-trans, trans-3,4-dideutero-pyrrolidine (DL-trans, trans-3,4-dideutero-proline) and unambiguous assignment of protons in the 1H n.m.r. spectrum of proline

Total lineshape analysis of high-resolution NMR spectra powered by simulated annealing

The novel algorithm for a total lineshape analysis of high-resolution NMR spectra has been developed. A global optimization by simulated annealing has been applied that has allowed to overcome the main trouble of common approaches which had frequently returned solutions for local minima rather than for global ones. The algorithm has been verified for the four-spin test systems ABCD, and has been successfully used for analysis of experimental NMR spectra of proline. The approach has allowed to avoid a sophisticated manual setup of initial parameters and to conduct the analysis of complicated high-resolution NMR spectra nearly automatically.

Conformational analysis of L-prolines in water

The results of the ring conformational analysis of L-proline, N-acetyl-L-proline, and trans-4-hydroxy-L-proline by NMR combined with calculations using density functional theory (DFT) and molecular dynamics (MD) are reported. Accurate values of 1H-1H J-couplings in water and other solvents have been determined. Using a two-site equilibrium model, the Cgamma-endo conformer of L-proline in water has been identified as intermediate between gammaTdelta [twist(Cgamma-endo, Cdelta-exo)] and gammaE [envelope(Cgamma-endo)] and the Cgamma-exo conformer as betaTgamma. Both conformers were equally populated at room temperature. The N-acetyl [cis-rotamer gammaTbeta(80%)/gammaE(20%) and trans-rotamer gammaTbeta(61%)/gammaE(39%)] and 4-hydroxy (gammaEpsilon) derivatives showed significant changes in both the population and the geometries of the preferred ring conformers. The combination of NMR predicted populations with the DFT B3LYP/6-311+G(2d,p)/IEFPCM calculations proved successful, resulting in fairly accurate predictions of J-couplings. Simulations using MD were mostly in favor of the two-site equilibrium model between Cgamma-endo and Cgamma-exo conformers, similar to that used for the analysis of NMR J-couplings. Various force fields examined for MD simulations failed to reproduce the ring conformational geometries and populations of L-proline in water accurately, while significantly better agreement with NMR was found for trans-N-acetyl-L-proline using GROMOS and AMBER force fields.