Adsorption of Binary Solvents on Chiral Stationary Phases with Grafted Macrocyclic Antibiotics

A study is performed of the adsorption of water–methanol and water–acetonitrile mixtures on chiral stationary phases (CSPs) Chirobiotic R, Chirobiotic T, and Nautilus-E with grafted macrocyclic antibiotics ristocetin A, teicoplanin, and eremomycin, respectively. The patterns of adsorption on the indicated CSPs are qualitatively the same, and differ only by quantitative indicators. Adsorption isotherms of excess water from binary solvents have adsorption azeotrope points and show the preferred absorption of water in the range of pure organic component to an azeotrope point in the range of 60–75 mol % for H2О–МеОН and 80–90 mol % for H2O–MeCN systems. It is shown that the thickness of the adsorption phase in the first case is less than one nominal molecular layer (0.10–0.13 nm). For H2O–MeCN, it is 3–4 molecular layers (0.88–1.05 nm). Activity coefficients are calculated for the components of solutions in surface layers. The coefficients indicate the systems deviate considerably from the properties of an ideal adsorption solution. Reasons for this behavior are discussed.

The X-Ray Structure of the Ligand-Free Antibiotic Ristocetin-A Reveals the Role of the Monomer/Dimer Equilibrium in Its Binding Mode

Ristocetin-A belongs to the group of the glycoheptapeptide antibiotics. The sulfate salt of ristocetin-A was crystallized in the P21 monoclinic space group with a homodimer in the asymmetric unit. The two subunits are linked back-to-back like the other members of the family via four peptide bonds forming a twisted β-sheet and exposing the binding pockets to the exterior. The two tetrasaccharide parts of this ligand-free antibiotic are in the anti/anti orientations contrary to what was found in the mono- and diliganded ristocetin-A/-(D-Ala-D-Ala) complexes in which the two tetrasaccharides of the dimer are syn/anti. The ligand-free dimer shows however some conformational differences between the two subunits, particularly in the terminal arabinose leading to one extended and one bent conformation of the tetrasaccharide moiety. Comparison between this structure and the two available mono- and diliganded structures confirms that the anti/anti to syn/anti flipping of the tetrasaccharide is a key step in the binding to the D-Ala-D-Ala-containing target sequence and cannot proceed without displacement of the monomer/dimer equilibrium.