Chiral stationary phases, approach

A. M. Stalcup, Cyclodextrin bonded chiral stationary phases in enantiomer separations in A practical approach to chiral separations by liquid chromatogra.phy, G. Subramanian, VCH, Weinheim (1994) Chapter 5. 

In addition to the development of the powerful chiral additive, this study also demonstrated that the often tedious deconvolution process can be accelerated using HPLC separation. As a result, only 15 libraries had to be synthesized instead of 64 libraries that would be required for the full-scale deconvolution. A somewhat similar approach also involving HPLC fractionations has recently been demonstrated by Griffey for the deconvolution of libraries screened for biological activity [76]. Although demonstrated only for CE, the cyclic hexapeptides might also be useful selectors for the preparation of chiral stationary phases for HPLC. However, this would require the development of non-trivial additional chemistry to appropriately link the peptide to a porous solid support. 

Fig. 3-11. Concept of reciprocal combinatorial approach to the preparation of chiral stationary phase. (Reprinted with permission from ref. [55]. Copyright 1999, American Chemical Society.)...

The versatility of chiral stationary phases and its effecitve application in both analytical and large-scale enantioseparation has been discussed in the earlier book A Practical Approach to Chiral Separation by Liquid Chromatography" (Ed. G. Sub-ramanian, VCH 1994). This book aims to bring to the forefront the current development and sucessful application chiral separation techniques, thereby providing an insight to researchers, analytical and industrial chemists, allowing a choice of methodology from the entire spectrum of available techniques. 

The last several years have seen an enormous growth in the number and use of chiral stationary phases in liquid chromatography [742,780-791]. Some problems with the gas chromatographic approach are that the analyte must be volatile to be analyzed and larger-scale preparative separations are frequently difficult. For entropic reasons relatively high temperatures tend to minimize the stability differences between the diastereomeric complexes and racemization of the stationary phase over time may also occur. The upper temperature limit for phases such as Chirasil-Val is about 230 C and is established by the rate of racemization of the chiral centers and not by column bleed. Liquid chromatography should be s ior in the above... 

Because plasma and urine are both aqueous matrixes, reverse-phase or polar organic mode enantiomeric separations are usually preferred as these approaches usually requires less elaborate sample preparation. Protein-, cyclodextrin-, and macrocyclic glycopeptide-based chiral stationary phases are the most commonly employed CSPs in the reverse phase mode. Also reverse phase and polar organic mode are more compatible mobile phases for mass spectrometers using electrospray ionization. Normal phase enantiomeric separations require more sample preparation (usually with at least one evaporation-to-dryness step). Therefore, normal phase CSPs are only used when a satisfactory enantiomeric separation cannot be obtained in reverse phase or polar organic mode. 

One of the most powerful methods for determining enantiomer composition is gas or liquid chromatography, as it allows direct separation of the enantiomers of a chiral substance. Early chromatographic methods required the conversion of an enantiomeric mixture to a diastereomeric mixture, followed by analysis of the mixture by either GC or HPLC. A more convenient chromatographic approach for determining enantiomer compositions involves the application of a chiral environment without derivatization of the enantiomer mixture. Such a separation may be achieved using a chiral solvent as the mobile phase, but applications are limited because the method consumes large quantities of costly chiral solvents. The direct separation of enantiomers on a chiral stationary phase has been used extensively for the determination of enantiomer composition. Materials for the chiral stationary phase are commercially available for both GC and HPLC. 

Since all the physical properties of two given enantiomers are the same in the absence of a chiral, or optically active, medium, their chromatographic resolution needs a different approach from the relatively simple separation of geometrical isomers, stereoisomers or positional isomers. Two methods are used. The older technique of indirect resolution, requires conversion of the enantiomers to diastereoisomers using a suitable chiral reagent, followed by separation of the diastereoisomers on a non-chiral GC or LC stationary phase. This technique has now been largely superseded by direct resolution, using either a chiral mobile phase (in LC) or a chiral stationary phase. A variety of types of chiral stationary phase have been developed for use in GC, LC and SFC(21 23). 

Most screening and optimization approaches in HPLC were defined using polysaccharide chiral stationary phases (CSP), thanks to their broad chiral recognition ability toward a large number of compounds. 

In this chapter, approaches to fast chiral separations using SFC, including fundamental considerations, influences of chiral stationary phases, modifiers, and additives are discussed. The thermodynamic aspects of SFC are also presented. 

Racemic modifications may be resolved. There are very few examples of this approach having been employed successfully. The racemic cylic ether (RS)-36, which contains two CH2OCH2CO2H arms attached to the 3 and 3 positions on the axially chiral binaphthyl units, has been resolved (48-50, 93, 94) to optical purity in both its enantiomers by liquid-liquid chromatography using a chiral stationary phase of either (R)- or (S)-valine adsorbed on diatomaceous eaitii. Very recently, the optical resolution of crown ethers (/ S)-37 and (/ 5)-38, incorporating the elements of planar chirality in the form of a rron -doubly bridged ethylene unit, has been achieved (95) by HPLC on (+)-poly(triphenyl-methyl methacrylate). 

Three approaches can be employed to separate peptide stereoisomers and amino acid enantiomers separations on chiral columns, separations on achiral stationary phases with mobile phases containing chiral selectors, and precolumn derivatization with chiral agents [111]. Cyclodextrins are most often used for the preparation of chiral columns and as chiral selectors in mobile phases. Macrocyclic antibiotics have also been used as chiral selectors [126]. Very recently, Ilsz et al. [127] reviewed HPLC separation of small peptides and amino acids on macrocyclic antibiotic-based chiral stationary phases. 

The ability to design chiral ILs in which the cation and anion is of fixed chirality represents additional tuning features of ILs. Two approaches have incorporated ILs as new stationary phases for chiral GC. One method involves the use of chiral ILs as stationary phases in WCOT GC [37]. In the second approach, chiral selectors (e.g., cyclodextrins) were dissolved in an achiral IL and the mixture coated onto the wall of the capillary colunm [38]. Both approaches can separate a variety of different analytes, but the observed enantioselectivities and efficiencies do not rival those observed with commercially available chiral stationary phases (CSPs). 

Most commonly, uv or uV Is spectroscopy is used as ihe basis for detection in hplc. When using a chiral stationary phase, confirmation of a chiral separalion may be obtained by either monitoring the column effluent at more than one wavelength or by running the sample more than once. Although not absolute proof of a chiral separalion. this approach does provide strong supporting evidence. 

If the separation factor approaches 1.0, possible causes include chiral stationary phase is incorrect, carrier gas velocity is too high, or only one enantiomer is present in the sample. 

The book provides systematic and detailed descriptions of the numerous approaches to chiral resolution. The first chapter is an introduction to basic concepts of molecular chirality and liquid chromatography. Chapters 2 through 9 discuss the chiral resolution of various classes of chiral stationary phases. Chapter 10 deals with chiral resolution using chiral mobile phase additives. These discussions elaborate the types, structures, and properties of the chiral phases,... 

On the other hand, the direct chromatographic approach involves the use of the chiral selector either in the mobile phase, a so-called chiral mobile phase additive (CMPA), or in the stationary phase [i.e., the chiral stationary phase (CSP)]. In the latter case, the chiral selector is chemically bonded or coated or allowed to absorb onto a suitable solid support. Of course chiral selectors still can be used as CMPAs, but the approach is a very expensive one owing to the high amount of chiral selector required for the preparation of the mobile phase, and the large amount of costly chiral selector that is wasted (since there is very little chance of recovering this compound). Moreover, this approach is not successftd in the preparative separation of the enantiomers. 

Stalcup AM, Cyclodextrin bonded chiral stationary phases in enantiomer separations, in A Practical Approach to Chiral Separations by Liquid Chromatography (Subramanian G, Ed.), VCH Verlag, Weinheim, Germany, p. 95 (1994). 

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