Amino-derivatised beaded cellulose gels. Novel accessible and biodegradable scavenger resins for solution phase combinatorial synthesis

The synthesis of a derivatised cellulose bead with a high loading of primary amines is reported. This material has proved applicable to the removal of excess electrophiles commonly encountered in solution-phase combinatorial chemistry from organic solvents, thus facilitating a rapid purification method of the desired target. The application of the resin to the preparation of an amide and a urea utilising such methodology is presented, along with data on the biodegradation of the resins using enzymatic approaches. The results indicate that the resin behaves in an identical manner to the more traditionally employed polystyrene/divinylbenzene gels often employed in this field, and yet can be prepared from a renewable resource, and biodegraded after use.