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In Fmoc/tBu-based solid-phase peptide synthesis (SPPS), the 4.4–4.6-fold excess of activated Fmoc amino acid relative to resin loading constitutes routine coupling stoichiometry. However, when a fully protected hydroxyproline-containing fragment is required for convergent assembly on the resin, the standard Fmoc-Hyp(tBu)-OH monomer cannot serve as the N-terminal donor without premature Fmoc removal. (2S,4R)-2-Carboxylic-4-Hydroxy-1-(p-nitrobenzyloxycarbonyl)-1-pyrrolidine (pNZ-Hyp-OH) is activated as a 2-hydroxy-4-carboxylic acid building block bearing an acid- and hydrogenolysis-labile urethane, orthogonal to both the Fmoc group and tBu-type side-chain protections. The compound is dissolved in anhydrous DMF to a concentration of 0.3 M and pre-activated with HATU (2.95 equiv) and 2,4,6-trimethylpyridine (6.0 equiv) at 0–4 °C for 3 min before addition to the resin-bound peptide amine. Coupling is allowed to proceed for 45–120 min at 20–25 °C. Kaiser and chloranil tests are performed after each coupling; a positive result triggers an automatic double-couple cycle with re-activation parameters identical to the first pass. Peptide synthesisers equipped with real-time UV monitoring at 301 nm track Fmoc deprotection and can detect residual pNZ absorption shoulder at 270 nm, though the molar extinction coefficient of the pNZ chromophore is approximately 9,600 M⁻¹·cm⁻¹, much lower than the Fmoc dibenzofulvene adduct. On a 0.1-mmol scale using ChemMatrix PEG resin (0.45 mmol/g loading), the coupling yield of pNZ-Hyp-OH onto H-Pro-O-resin typically attains 97.5–99.1% as determined by Fmoc-based quantification of unreacted sites. Production-scale runs on a CEM Liberty Blue automated microwave peptide synthesiser operate at 75 °C with 20 W forward power for 4 min, but the pNZ group shows 3.8% loss under these forcing temperatures in the presence of DIEA, necessitating a drop in temperature to 50 °C and extension of coupling time to 10 min to preserve orthogonality. The terminal product from these convergent SPPS routes is often a 15–24-mer peptide containing 4-hydroxyproline residues for triple-helical collagen mimetics or for preparing C-terminal telopeptide analogues used in bone repair coatings. When pNZ-Hyp-OH Replaces Cbz-Hyp-OH in Liquid-Phase Fragment Condensation of Antifibrotic Tripeptide IntermediatesIn the kilogram-scale synthesis of Ac-Gly-Hyp-Pro-NH₂ derivatives evaluated for matrix metalloproteinase inhibition, the use of Cbz-Hyp-OH introduces a deprotection step requiring 4 bar H₂ over 10% Pd/C for 6–8 h, with attendant catalyst removal and metal residue compliance risks. By switching to pNZ-Hyp-OH, the carbamate is cleaved under transfer hydrogenation with 1.2 equiv of ammonium formate and 5% Pd/C in methanol at 40 °C within 90 min, reducing Pd leaching to below 10 ppm in the crude peptide solution as measured by ICP-OES (PerkinElmer Avio 500). The liquid-phase assembly employs a 3+2 convergent strategy: pNZ-Hyp-OH is first coupled with H-Pro-OMe·HCl using N-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-N′-ethylcarbodiimide hydrochloride (EDC·HCl, 1.05 equiv) and ethyl (hydroxyimino)cyanoacetate (OxymaPure, 1.1 equiv) in a 9:1 (v/v) THF/DMF mixture at 0 °C to 5 °C, with N-methylmorpholine (2.2 equiv) maintaining apparent pH 8.0–8.3. The dipeptide intermediate precipitates upon drowning into ice-cold 5% NaHCO₃ and is isolated in 88–92% yield after filtration and vacuum drying at 35 °C/10 mbar. Subsequent hydrogenolytic removal of pNZ yields H-Hyp-Pro-OMe, which is acylated with Ac-Gly-OSu in THF/water (1:1). The fully protected tripeptide is saponified with 1.0 M NaOH in methanol (1.2 equiv) at 0–5 °C over 2 h. Compliance with ICH Q7 for GMP starting materials is achieved by monitoring the pNZ-Hyp-OH batch via HPLC (USP 621, C18, 220 nm) with acceptance criteria: purity ≥99.0%, single impurity ≤0.15%, and (4R)-epimer content ≤0.3% by chiral HPLC (Chiralpak ZWIX(+), 3 µm, 150×4.0 mm). The final Ac-Gly-Hyp-Pro-NH₂ tripeptide, obtained as a white lyophilised powder, enters formulation screens for post-surgical adhesion prevention. In the synthesis of collagen-like triple-helical peptides (CLPs) of the generic sequence (Pro-Hyp-Gly)7–10 for X-ray crystallographic studies of integrin-binding motifs, the incorporation of pNZ-Hyp-OH as the penultimate N-terminal residue before global deprotection and cleavage allows selective removal of the pNZ group on the resin using 1.0 M SnCl₂ in DMF containing 2% thiophenol and 1% acetic acid at 25 °C for 2×30 min. This procedure leaves Fmoc and tBu groups fully intact, confirmed by 13C CP/MAS NMR of the dried resin. On a 0.05-mmol scale using TentaGel S RAM resin (0.24 mmol/g), the pNZ-Hyp residue is subjected to in situ acetylation with acetic anhydride/2,6-lutidine in DMF after pNZ removal, generating an N-acetyl cap while the rest of the peptide remains fully protected. The subsequent standard TFA/triisopropylsilane/water (95:2.5:2.5) cocktail cleaves the peptide and removes tBu groups, affording the crude Ac-(Pro-Hyp-Gly)7-NH₂ with the terminal Hyp residue N-acetylated without any deletion sequences. Mass-directed preparative HPLC (Waters AutoPurification, XBridge C18, 19×150 mm, 5 µm) with a linear gradient of 2–30% acetonitrile in 0.1% TFA over 15 min resolves the target from Ac-capped deletion peptides missing one Hyp residue; this impurity elutes 0.7 min earlier under these conditions. The lyophilised product triple-helix content, measured by circular dichroism spectroscopy at 225 nm in 50 mM acetic acid at 4 °C, exceeds 85% mean residue ellipticity relative to the fully folded control. Crystals grown by hanging-drop vapour diffusion against 0.2 M ammonium sulfate and 20% PEG 3350 at 18 °C diffract to 1.45 Å resolution, enabling detailed hydrogen-bonding maps of hydroxyproline-bound water networks in the triple helix. How Does (2S,4R)-pNZ-4-Hydroxyproline Serve as a Chiral Pool Building Block for Asymmetric Organocatalysis?The (2S,4R)-configured pyrrolidine ring constitutes the core of numerous proline-type organocatalysts. pNZ-Hyp-OH is converted into 4-O-TBDMS-protected derivatives that, after removal of the pNZ group with 1 atm H₂ over 10% Pd/C (0.05 equiv) in ethyl acetate/5% methanol at 25 °C for 4 h, provide the free secondary amine for condensation with pentafluorophenyl esters. In a representative sequence producing (2S,4R)-4-(tert-butyldimethylsilyloxy)pyrrolidine-2-carboxylic acid diphenylprolinol ester, the pNZ deprotection proceeds with >99% conversion and 0.2% retention of the 4R-OTBDMS configuration, as verified by GC-MS of the corresponding Mosher amide. The free amine is immediately treated with 1.08 equiv of pentafluorophenyl diphenylprolinol carbonate in CH₂Cl₂ at 0 °C in the presence of 1.2 equiv of N,N-diisopropylethylamine. After 2 h, the TBDMS ether is cleaved with triethylamine trihydrofluoride (4.0 equiv) in THF at 22 °C for 16 h, unmasking the 4-hydroxyl group. The resulting organocatalyst is purified by silica gel flash chromatography (EtOAc/hexane, 1:2 to 1:1) and isolated as a colourless oil that solidifies upon standing at −20 °C. The catalyst loading of 5 mol% in the asymmetric Michael addition of cyclohexanone to trans-β-nitrostyrene yields 94% ee and 18:1 d.r. in brine at 0 °C after 48 h, as determined by chiral HPLC (Chiralcel OD-H, hexane/i-PrOH 90:10). Scale-up to 500 mmol of Michael acceptor in a 2 L jacketed reactor with overhead stirring at 250 rpm required rigorous exclusion of oxygen to prevent catalyst oxidation; dissolved oxygen levels were maintained below 0.5 ppm by argon sparging. The pNZ-Hyp-OH precursor batch for this work must pass a heavy metal screen (Pd ≤2 ppm, Ni ≤1 ppm) because residual metals catalyse oxidative degradation of the pyrrolidine ring during storage at ambient humidity. Direct oxidation of the 4-hydroxyl group in pNZ-Hyp-OH to the ketone, followed by diethylaminosulfur trifluoride (DAST)-mediated gem-difluorination, provides (2S)-1-pNZ-4,4-difluoroproline. This motif has been integrated into inhibitors of hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase domain enzymes (HIF-PHDs), where the gem-difluoro substitution mimics the natural prolyl-4-hydroxylase transition state. The oxidation step uses a modified Parikh-Doering protocol: pNZ-Hyp-OH in DMSO (0.5 M) is treated with pyridine·SO₃ (3.3 equiv) and triethylamine (8.0 equiv) at 10 °C for 5 h, giving the 4-keto intermediate in 78% yield after aqueous workup and trituration with diethyl ether. The crude ketone is taken into ClCH₂CH₂Cl, treated with DAST (2.5 equiv) at 0 °C, warmed to 45 °C over 2 h, and held for 16 h to achieve complete fluorination. The pNZ group survives these conditions with only 4% competing deprotection. After purification, (2S)-1-pNZ-4,4-difluoroproline is coupled via its acid chloride (generated in situ with oxalyl chloride/catalytic DMF) to 2-aminobenzophenone derivatives, yielding HIF-PHD inhibitor candidates. LC-MS analysis (XSelect HSS T3, 2.5 µm, 2.1×50 mm) of the final inhibitor shows [M+H]⁺ with characteristic loss of the pNZ fragment at m/z 136 (4-nitrobenzyl cation) under CID conditions, facilitating selective reaction monitoring. Published inhibitory IC₅₀ values for this scaffold in a fluorescence-based hydroxylation assay (CypExpress P450 2C9, Vivid® substrate) are in the low nanomolar range, although batch-to-batch variability in residual DAST-derived sulfite esters necessitates an additional Polystyrene-bound morpholine scavenger step to ensure ≤0.1% sulfur content in the API intermediate. Derivatisation to Fluorescent and Biotinylated Probes for Molecular ImagingRemoval of the pNZ group under neutral hydrogenolysis yields (2S,4R)-4-hydroxyproline, the free α-amino acid, which is converted to its N-hydroxysuccinimidyl ester with N,N′-disuccinimidyl carbonate (1.1 equiv) and pyridine (2.0 equiv) in acetonitrile at 0 °C. The activated ester is immediately reacted with 5-(aminomethyl)fluorescein hydrochloride (1.0 equiv) in DMF containing 2% triethylamine to produce fluorescein-Hyp conjugate, used as a probe for the proton-coupled oligopeptide transporter PEPT1. Purification is achieved by semi-preparative HPLC on a Waters SunFire C18 column (10 µm, 19×250 mm) with 0.05% TFA/acetonitrile gradient, fraction collection triggered by UV absorption at 494 nm. The product is lyophilised in amber vials to prevent photobleaching and stored under argon at −20 °C, where it remains stable for 6 months as assessed by UPLC-UV at 254 nm with a drift of less than 1.2% in peak area. This conjugate is applied at 10 µM extracellular concentration in HEK293 cells stably expressing hPEPT1, with cellular uptake imaged using a Zeiss LSM 780 confocal microscope, 488 nm excitation, 500–550 nm emission. No hydrolysis of the amide linkage is detected in Hank’s balanced salt solution at pH 7.4 over 24 h, confirming the biostability of the Hyp-derived probe. Selective Deprotection of pNZ from (2S,4R)-pNZ-4-Hydroxyproline in the Presence of Common Protecting Groups | Deprotection Method | Reagents/Conditions | Time (h) | pNZ Removal (%) | Fmoc/tBu Stable? | Residual Pd (ppm) | | Catalytic hydrogenation | H₂ (1 atm), 10% Pd/C (0.1 equiv), MeOH/THF, 25 °C | 2–3 | >99 | Yes | 8–15 | | Transfer hydrogenation | HCOONH₄ (5 equiv), 10% Pd/C (0.2 equiv), MeOH, 40 °C | 1.5 | 98 | Yes | 3–7 | | SnCl₂/thiophenol | 1.0 M SnCl₂, 2% PhSH, 1% AcOH in DMF, 25 °C | 1 (2×0.5) | 96 | Yes | n.a. | | Zn dust/AcOH | 10 equiv Zn powder, AcOH/MeOH (1:4), sonication 25 °C | 4 | 92 | Yes (minor tBu loss 2%) | n.a. | | TFA cocktail | TFA/TIS/H₂O (95:2.5:2.5), 25 °C | 2 | 100 | No (globally deprotects) | n.a. | Release Specifications and Analytical Methods for (2S,4R)-pNZ-4-Hydroxyproline as a Peptide Building Block | Parameter | Acceptance Criterion | Test Method | | Appearance | White to off-white crystalline powder | Visual inspection | | Identification (FTIR) | Conforms to reference spectrum; key bands at 1705 cm⁻¹ (C=O urethane), 1520 cm⁻¹ (NO₂ asym. str.), 1348 cm⁻¹ (NO₂ sym. str.) | USP 197K, KBr pellet | | Specific rotation [α]D20 | −38.0° to −42.0° (c=1.0, MeOH) | USP 781S | | Purity (HPLC) | ≥98.5% area | USP 621, C18, 210 nm; gradient 10–90% MeCN in water (0.1% TFA) over 20 min | | (4S)-Epimer | ≤0.5% | Chiral HPLC: Chiralpak ZWIX(+), 3 µm, 150×4.0 mm, MeOH/water/TFA 95:5:0.1 | | Water content (K.F.) | ≤0.5% | USP 921, Method Ib | | Residue on ignition | ≤0.1% | USP 281 | | Heavy metals (Pd, Ni) | Pd ≤2 ppm, Ni ≤1 ppm | ICP-MS per USP 730 |
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