The 220 MHz spectra of tocinamide and deaminotocinamide, the ring moieties of oxytocin and of deamino-oxytocin, respectively, were investigated in [U-2Hjdimethylsulfoxide solution. Extensive decoupling and exchange experiments allow complete spectral assignment and determination of many coupling constants. Circular dichroism spectra assigned a right-hand screw sense to the C-S-S-C group. The conformations of tocinamide and deaminotocinamide are different from each other and from those suggested for the ring portions of oxytocin and deamino-oxytocin. The relationship of this difference to biological activity is commented upon. The importance of the interaction of the side chain with the ring in oxytocin and deamino-oxytocin is emphasized.The use of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) to study the structural features of cyclic polypeptides is well established (1-17). Information concerning various conformational features, including peptide backbone structure, rigidity, and presence of intramolecular hydrogen-bonding is obtained by this method. Since it is expected that pharmacological differences between biologically active compounds and their analogs can arise from conformational differences, the study of the tertiary structure of cyclic polypeptide hormones should be extremely useful.Our approach to an investigation of the conformation of the octapeptide, oxytocin, has been to explore the conformation of the side chain and of the 20-membered ring moiety separately in an effort to establish their relationship to one another in the entire hormone. The same solvent, [U-2H]-Me2SO, was used for all our NMR studies on these and related compounds. Oxytocin has the following structure (numbers indicate the position of the individual amino-acid residues). r Cys-Tyr-Ile-Gln-Asn-Cys-Pro-Leu-Gly(NH2) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9In an earlier communication (18), we showed by use of highresolution NMR spectroscopy that certain derivatives of the side chain of oxytocin, R-Pro-Leu-Gly-NH2, showed cistrans isomerism about the R-Pro bond. We also suggested that in S-Bzl-Cys-Pro-Leu-Gly(NH2), there may be evidence for interaction of the C-terminal carboxamide with the sulfur atom of the Cys residue.Some proposals have recently been presented concerning the conformation of the ring of oxytocin (6, 17), but little is known of the ring without the side-chain. We have investigated the conformation of the 20-membered ring of r -oxytocin, tocinamide, Cys-Tyr-Ile-Gln-Asn-Cys-(NH2), and that of deamino-oxytocin, deaminotocinamide, 0 r 11 S-CH2-CH2-C-Tyr-Ile-Gln-Asn-Cys-NH2. Tocinamide has only about 3.2 units/mg of the oxytocict activity associated with oxytocin itself, but no AVD § activity (19); deaminotocinamide has about 30 units/mg of the oxytocic activity, but no AVD activity (19).In this communication, we show that tocinamide and deaminotocinamide have different conformations in Me2SO, both of which are maintained over a wide range of temperatures. These conformations are significantly different from those proposed for the ring portions ...