THE PROTON MAGNETIC RESONANCE SPECTRA AND TAUTOMERIC EQUILIBRIA OF ALDOSES IN DEUTERIUM OXIDE

The proton magnetic resonance spectra of D-xylose, D-lyxose, D-arabinose, D-ribose, D-glucose, D-mannose, and D-galactose were determined at 100 Mc.p.s. in deuterium oxide. The chemical shifts and structures of a number of ring protons in these compounds were determined either by spin-decoupling experiments or by synthesis of specifically deuterated compounds. The proton magnetic resonance parameters are shown to provide considerable information on the conformations and tautomeric equilibria for the sugars in aqueous solution. It is concluded that, for aldopyranoses in a chair conformation, the chemical shift of equatorial protons at a given position is virtually independent of configurational changes at other positions. However, an axial proton is shielded about 0.3 p.p.m. less by an axial hydroxyl group at a neighboring position than when the hydroxyl group is in an equatorial orientation. An axial hydroxyl group leads to deshielding of an opposing axial proton by about 0.35 p.p.m. By using the chemical shifts of the ring protons of β-D-xylopyranose and β-D-glucopyranose as reference point, the chemical shifts of protons in other pyranose structures could be anticipated to within a useful degree of accuracy.Evidence was obtained that D-ribose and 2-deoxy-D-ribose exist in aqueous solution both in the pyranose and in the furanose forms. None of the other pentoses showed readily detectable amounts of the furanose forms at equilibrium. Although D-allose does not give readily detectable amounts of the furanose forms when at equilibrium in aqueous solutions, D-altrose does. D-Talose showed only two forms, one of which was the β-pyranose structure.