Intramolecular reactions directed electrostatic

The favorability of acid-base reactions is affected, in pa by electrostatic interactions between charged atoms a dipoles within the same molecule. The equilibrium w shift in the direction of an ion that is stabilized 1 intramolecular ion-dipole interactions. 

The intermediate can, however, also be trapped by an amine to form an amide although at pH 7 in aqueous solution primary amines are predominantly proto-nated and only poorly reactive. Intramolecularity will, however, improve the poor reactivity of a lysine residue towards an acyl intermediate provided that the His and the Lys residues are close in space. The net reaction under these conditions is therefore an amidation of the lysine side chain by the active ester that is more efficient than the direct acylation of a lysine residue by at least three orders of magnitude (Fig. 10). The lysine residue will also improve the reactivity of the His side chain by electrostatic transition state stabilization and the wasteful reaction with other His residues that gives rise to hydrolysis is therefore suppressed. 

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