Natural unichiral

The educt, a racemate, is derivatized before the separation with an agent which might be achiral or unichiral (Fig. 7-1), and afterwards is passed through a chromatographic system which is equipped with a stationary phase. This stationary phase may also be achiral or unichiral in nature. 

Chirality is a hallmark of many molecules from nature. Indeed, fhe number of chiral natural molecules is very large and the structural variety they represent is vast Among such substances - be they small molecules or macromolecules - an overwhelming majority occur in unichiral form. For example, chiral a-amino acids... 

The vast majority of chiral drugs present in the old remedies were unichiral Mother Nature is not even-handed. All in all, chiral drugs have been of great importance in the development of pharmacotherapy, from the earliest plant remedies of miUeimia ago to the modern age. Many of these ancient chiral drugs are still in use today, and many new and important drugs have been developed by modifying the molecules of natural products identified in old remedies. 

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