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Updated: Aug 15, 2026

A Chemical Screening Procedure for Glucocorticoid Signaling with a Zebrafish Larva Luciferase Reporter System
Published on: September 10, 2013
Aerial oxidation of the glucocorticoid side-chain under pH control
John S Edmonds1, Masatoshi Morita, Peter Turner
1Endocrine Disrupter Research Laboratory, National Institute for Environmental Studies, 16-2 Onogawa, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8506, Japan. edmonds.john.s@nies.go.jp
Abstract:
The outcome of aerial oxidation of the glucocortico-steroid side-chain (as exemplified by dexamethasone) has been shown to be subject to strict pH control. At pH 7.4 the glyoxal is the only product; at pH values of 8 and 9.2 the etioacid is formed, and at pH values of 13 or above the epimeric glycolic acids are produced. The glycolic acid epimer that predominates by a factor of 2 and is more stable has been shown by an X-ray crystal structural analysis to be the 20R compound. The presence of arsenite changes the course of the reaction and only the glycolic acids are yielded at pH values of 8 and above.
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