Chiral recognition molecule

The optimized complex form of the chiral recognition molecule (CRM 1) of Phase 1 with (R)-acetylalanine methylester is shown in Figure 8.2. The structure optimization was performed using the MM2 program, and the... 

Table 8.9 Occupied areas for each chiral recognition molecule. The size of one molecule in the three-dimensional structure is about 1 nm. Reproduced by permission of Elsevier, ref. 29.

The term chiral recognition refers to a process m which some chiral receptor or reagent interacts selectively with one of the enantiomers of a chiral molecule Very high levels of chiral recognition are common m biological processes (—) Nicotine for exam pie IS much more toxic than (+) nicotine and (+) adrenaline is more active than (—) adrenaline m constricting blood vessels (—) Thyroxine an ammo acid of the thyroid gland that speeds up metabolism is one of the most widely used of all prescription... 

Cyclodextrins are macrocyclic compounds comprised of D-glucose bonded through 1,4-a-linkages and produced enzymatically from starch. The greek letter which proceeds the name indicates the number of glucose units incorporated in the CD (eg, a = 6, /5 = 7, 7 = 8, etc). Cyclodextrins are toroidal shaped molecules with a relatively hydrophobic internal cavity (Fig. 6). The exterior is relatively hydrophilic because of the presence of the primary and secondary hydroxyls. The primary C-6 hydroxyls are free to rotate and can partially block the CD cavity from one end. The mouth of the opposite end of the CD cavity is encircled by the C-2 and C-3 secondary hydroxyls. The restricted conformational freedom and orientation of these secondary hydroxyls is thought to be responsible for the chiral recognition inherent in these molecules (77). 

The possibility to resolve the two enantiomers of 27a (or 26) by crystalline complexa-tion with optically active 26 (or 27a) is mainly due to differences in topological complementarity between the H-bonded chains of host and guest molecules. In this respect, the spatial relationships which affect optical resolution in the above described coordination-assisted clathrates are similar to those characterizing some optically resolved molecular complexes S4). This should encourage additional applications of the lattice inclusion phenomena to problems of chiral recognition. 

A number of specialised stationary phases have been developed for the separation of chiral compounds. They are known as chiral stationary phases (CSPs) and consist of chiral molecules, usually bonded to microparticulate silica. The mechanism by which such CSPs discriminate between enantiomers (their chiral recognition, or enantioselectivity) is a matter of some debate, but it is known that a number of competing interactions can be involved. Columns packed with CSPs have recently become available commercially. They are some three to five times more expensive than conventional hplc columns, and some types can be used only with a restricted range of mobile phases. Some examples of CSPs are given below ... 

Systems exhibiting chiral recognition. Complexation of an optically active guest molecule (+)G or (-)G by a chiral host (—)H may be represented as follows ... 

An understanding of the recognition of chirality at a molecular level has become of interest in many fields of chemistry and biology. In the past decade, many attempts to clarify the mechanism of chiral recognition on CSPs for liquid chromatography have been made by means of chromatography, NMR spectroscopy,199 202 X-ray analysis, and computational methods.203 - 206 The successful studies have been mostly carried out for the small-molecule CSPs, especially cyclodextrin-based CSPs and Pirkle-type (brush-type) CSPs. In contrast, only a few mechanistic studies on chiral discrimination at the molecular... 

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