how are chemists able to change the stereochemistry of a drug? Like what kind of experiments are done to test if you have the correct stereoisomer ?
Stereochemistry of a compound means the spatial orientation of the constituents around the asymmetric carbon center. Stereochemistry of drugs are important for their biological action. Certain enantiomers of drugs when introduced in a chiral environment, different enantiomers show different pharmacological and chemical behaviors. Stereochemistry of a drug can be changed using the asymmetric synthesis, or with the use of chiral reagents, that could change the stereochemistry of the reactant in opposite fashion.
Stereochemistry of chiral drugs can be changed with the use of reactions that change the spatial configuration of the constituents around the chiral carbon center. Some of the examples of such reactions are SN1, SN2, SNi, etc.
Examples of some of the experiments that can change the absolute configuration of an isomer include the use of chiral enzymatic action, sigma tropic rearrangements, etc.
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