title: Racemates revisited: heterochiral assemblies and the example of DL-thalidomide.
abstract: The existence of racemic compounds, comprised of pairs of opposite enantiomers as discrete molecular entities, has been accepted for over a century. However, their ability to remain as associated dimers when in solution is uncertain, if not generally doubted. In this article, data has been assembled to provide evidence for the presence of intact dimeric heterochiral assemblies in solution and presents DL-thalidomide as a probable example of this phenomenon.
authors: Biomolecular Medicine, Department of Surgery and Cancer, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK.
authors: David E
authors: DE
authors: Hague
authors: Jeffrey R
authors: JR
authors: Idle
authors: Steve C
authors: SC
authors: Mitchell
authors: Robert L
authors: RL
authors: Smith
mesh_terms: D019281:Dimerization; D015394:Molecular Structure; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship; D013723:Teratogens / Q000737:chemistry*; D013792:Thalidomide / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D013723:Teratogens; D013792:Thalidomide