Determination of the linkages of disaccharides containing a 2-acetamido-2-deoxy sugar unit by solvent effects in circular dichroism.

The circular dichroism spectra of 2-acetamido-2-deoxy sugars in 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-propanol (F6Pr-2-ol) solutions show a positive band in the n-pi region (209 nm) in contrast to a negative c.d. band in water solution. This difference is interpreted as an indication of a change in the average orientation of the hydroxyl groups adjacent to the amide group. C.d. spectra of 2-acetamido-2-deoxy sugars having a methyl group at O-1 and O-3 confirm this interpretation and suggest that the c.d. spectrum of a disaccharide in F6Pr-2-ol reflects strongly the disaccharide linkage. Large differences in the c.d. spectra of (1 leads to 4) and (1 leads to 6)-linked disaccharides in this solvent lead to rules for distinguishing the linkages of the disaccharides.