Abstract
A homologous series of two chain derivatives of L-alanine, namely N-acyl L-alanine alkyl esters (NAAEs), bearing matched, saturated, acyl and alkyl chains ( n= 9-18) have been synthesized. The thermotropic phase transitions and supramolecular structure of NAAEs were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD). Results obtained from DSC studies indicate that the transition temperatures ( T t), enthalpies ( ΔH t) and entropies ( ΔS t) exhibit odd-even alternation with compounds bearing odd acyl and alkyl chains showing higher values of T t, ΔH t and ΔS t as compared to NAAEs with even acyl and alkyl chains. However, the transition enthalpies and entropies of the odd- and even chain length series independently exhibit a linear dependence on the chain length. The d-spacings obtained from PXRD increase linearly with chain length with an increment of 1.76 Å/CH 2, suggesting that NAAEs adopt either a tilted bilayer structure or a bent structure. The present results provide a thermodynamic and structural basis for investigating the interaction of NAAEs with other membrane lipids, which in turn can shed light in understanding how they can enhance the transdermal permeability of stratum corneum.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bouwstra J A and Honeywell-Nguyen P L 2002 Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev. 54 S1–S41
Lampe M A, Burlingame A L, Whitney J, Williams M L, Brown B E, Roitman E and Elias P M 1983 J. Lipid Res. 24 120
Elias P M 1983 J. Invest. Dermatol. 80 44
Vavrova K, Hrabalek A, Dolezal P, Holas T and Zbytovska J 2003 Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett 13 2351
Minakuchi N, Hoe K, Yamaki D, Ten-no S, Nakashima K, Goto M, Mizuhata M and Maruyama T 2012 Langmuir 28 9259
Sivaramakrishna D and Swamy M J 2015 (submitted for publication)
Sivaramakrishna D, Reddy S T, Nagaraju T and Swamy M J 2015 Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochem. Eng. Aspects 471 108
Akoka S, Tellier C, Le Roux C and Marion D 1988 Chem. Phys. Lipids 46 43
Marsh D 1990 In Handbook of Lipid Bilayers (Florida: CRC Press) p. 135
Huang S M, Bisogno T, Petros T J, Chang S -Y, Zavitsanos P A, Zipkin R E, Sivakumar R, Coop A, Maeda D Y, De Petrocellis L, Burstein S, Di Marzo V and Walker J M 2001 J. Biol. Chem. 276 42639
Rimmerman N, Bradshaw H B, Hughes H V, Chen J S -C, Hu S S -J, McHugh D, Vefring E, Jahnsen J A, Thompson E L, Masuda K, Cravatt B F, Burstein S, Vasko M R, Prieto A L, O’Dell D K and Walker J M 2008 Mol. Pharmacol. 74 213
Smoum R, Bar A, Tan B, Milman G, Attar-Namdar M, Ofek O, Stuart J M, Bajayo A, Tam J, Kram V, O’Dell D, Walker M J, Bradshaw H B, Bab I and Mechoulam R 2010 Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U S A 107 17710
Reddy S T, Krovi K P and Swamy M J 2014 Cryst. Growth Des. 14 4944
Larsson K 1986 In The Lipid Hand-book F D Gunstone, J L Harwood and F B Padley (Eds.) (London: Chapman and Hall) p. 321
Ramakrishnan M, Sheeba V, Komath S S and Swamy M J 1997 Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1329 302
Kamlekar R K, Tarafdar P K and Swamy M J 2010 J. Lipid Res. 51 42
Reddy S T, Tarafdar P K, Kamlekar R K and Swamy M J 2013 J. Phys. Chem. B 117 8747
Reddy S T and Swamy M J 2015 Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1848 95
Lewis R N A H, Mantsch H H and McElhaney R N 1989 Biophys. J. 56 183
Lewis R N A H, Sykes B D and McElhaney R N 1987 Biochemistry 26 4036
Marsh D and Swamy M J 2000 Chem. Phys. Lipids 105 43
Tarafdar P K, Reddy S T and Swamy M J 2012 Cryst. Growth Des. 12 1132
Tarafdar P K, Reddy S T and Swamy M J 2013 J. Phys. Chem. B 117 9900
Larsson K 1996 Acta Crystallogr. 21 267
Larsson K 1966 J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc 43 559
Marsh D 1982 In Supramolecular Structure and Function G Pifat and J N Herak (Eds.) (Plenum Press: New York) p. 127
Pascher I, Sundell S, Harlos K and Eibl H 1987 Biochim. Biophys. Acta 896 77
Pascher I and Sundell S 1977 Chem. Phys. Lipids 20 175
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by a research grant from the Department of Science and Technology (India) to MJS. DS was supported by Senior Research Fellowships from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (India). The University Grants Commission (India) is acknowledged for its support through the UPE and CAS programs, to University of Hyderabad and School of Chemistry, respectively.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Supplementary Information
Representative FTIR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR and HRMS spectra of N-decanoyl-L-alanine decyl ester are given in Figures S1–4. Corresponding spectral data for all NAAEs ( n= 9-18) are given in tables S1–S4. Supplementary Information is available at www.ias.ac.in/chemsci.
Electronic supplementary material
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
SIVARAMAKRISHNA, D., SWAMY, M.J. Differential scanning calorimetric and powder X-ray diffraction studies on a homologous series of N-acyl-L-alanine esters with matched chains (n = 9-18). J Chem Sci 127, 1627–1635 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12039-015-0928-5
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12039-015-0928-5