The mass spectra of trifluoroacetyl-2,5-diketopiperazines. I. cyclo-(-Gly-X), cyclo-(-Ala-X) (X = Gly, Val, Leu, Ile), and cyclo-(-Ala-Ala)

The trifluoroacetyl derivatives of the 2,5-diketopiperazines cyclo-(-Gly-X), cyclo-(-Ala-X) (X = Gly, Val, Leu, Ile), and cyclo-(-Ala-Ala) were examined by GC-MS. The molecular ion was readily detectable only for TFA-cyclo-(-Gly-Gly) (m/e 306, 9%). For those compounds containing a valyl or leucyl/isoleucyl residue the ion of highest mass in the spectrum was formed by elimination of C 3 H 6 or C 4 H 8 , respectively, from the molecular ion. In the TFA-cyclo-(-Gly-X) series this ion corresponded to the molecular ion of TFA-cyclo-(Gly-Gly) (m/e 306), and in the TFA-cyclo-(-Ala-X) series, to the molecular ion of TFA-cyclo-(-Ala-Gly) (m/e 320). The fragmentation patterns proposed for these compounds are based on the further degradation of these parent ions so that each compound within a series has a similar mass spectrum. However, sufficient differences were detectable in the various spectra to permit identification of the individual DKP's.Many of the fragmentation pathways devised to explain the mass spectra were supported by high resolution data and appropriate metastable ions.