ISOTOPIC MULTIPLETS IN THE C-13 NMR-SPECTRA OF ANILINE DERIVATIVES AND NUCLEOSIDES WITH PARTIALLY DEUTERATED AMINO-GROUPS - EFFECTS OF INTRAMOLECULAR AND INTERMOLECULAR HYDROGEN-BONDING

In aniline derivatives, the carbon-13 resonances of atoms bearing partially deuterated amino groups, as well as the resonances of vicinal carbon atoms, appear as multiplets. This phenomenon, which is due to upfield deuterium isotope effects on carbon-13 chemical shifts, is observed under conditions of slow hydrogen exchange (e.g., in Me2SO solutions). The effects are larger for groups engaged in intramolecular hydrogen bonds. Empirical expressions are presented that relate isotope effects with amino proton chemical shifts and hydrogen bond energies. Isotopic multiplets are also observed in the carbon-13 NMR spectra of partially deuterated nucleosides. The multiplet structure is altered upon formation of base pairs. These results are interpreted in terms of hydrogen exchange reactions involving uridine (or thymidine) hydrogen-bonded dimers or changes in hydrogen bond energies upon formation of guanosine-cytidine complexes. Estimates are given for the energies of individual hydrogen bonds in Watson-Crick base pairs.