Study of Oxidation of Some Alpha Amino Acids by 1, 3-Dichloro-5, 5-Dimethylhydantoin in Aqueous Acetic Acid Medium

1,3-dichloro-5,5-dimethylhydantoin (DCDMH) belongs to the class of N-halo compounds and is a moderate oxidant. The final hydrolysis of this compound leads to the formation of active positive halogen species like HOCl and H2O + Cl. The H2O + Cl manifests more in non-polar or less polar media, extensively used as a chlorinating and oxidizing agents in organic substrates. The generated species are utilized in solution and gaining importance in organic synthesis and also in analytical determination of organic compounds. 1,2 Since the N-halooxidants exhibit appreciable stability both in acid and alkaline medium 3,4 hence widely used in kinetic studies. Biological production of hypochlorous acid (HOCl) is also reported during activation of ecosinophilis. The H2O + Cl and HOCl thus produced kill the invading pathogens and also play an important role in damaging the tissues. It was also concluded that alphaaminoacids namely l-Alanine and l-Glycine are the major biological compounds 5 reacting with the H2O + Cl.