The pyrrolizidine alkaloid intermedine-N-oxide was isolated from Cerinthe glabra for the first time. Due to the questionable assignments of NMR signals of this compound in previous literature reports ab initio calculations of the 13 C NMR values based on the GIAO approach, using HF and B3LYP levels of theory and the four basis sets 6-31G(d), 6-311G(d), 6-31G(d,p), and 6-311G(d,p) were performed. The assignments obtained this way are in very good accordance with the experimental values.

Atorvastatin calcium (Lipitor®, Sortis®) is a well-established cholesterol synthesis enzyme (CSE) inhibitor commonly used in the therapy of hypercholesterolemia. This drug is known to be sensitive to acid treatment, but only little data has been published on the structures of the degradation products. Here we report the identification of two novel degradation products of atorvastatin, which are formed only under drastic acidic conditions. While treatment with conc. sulfuric acid led to a loss of the carboxanilide residue (accompanied by an expectable lactonization/dehydration process in the side chain), treatment with conc. aqueous hydrochloric acid gave a complex, bridged molecule under C–C-bond formation of the lactone moiety with the pyrrole, migration of the isopropyl group and loss of the carboxanilide residue. The novel degradation products were characterized by NMR spectroscopy, HRMS data and X-ray crystal structure analysis.

Isolation of the Pyrrolizidine Alkaloid Intermedine-N-oxide (I) from Cerinthe glabra and ab initio Calculation of Its 13 C NMR Shifts. -(LUBER, M.; MUSA, A.; KADRY, H. A.; BRACHER*, F.; Z. Naturforsch., B: Chem. Sci. 67 (2012) 5, 411-416, http://dx.doi.org/10.5560/znb.2012-0030 ; Inst. Pharm., Zent. Pharmaforsch.,