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Updated: Jul 19, 2026

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4-(4'-Methyltetrafluorophenyl)-2,3,5,6-tetrafluorobenzyl bromide: a new electrophoric derivatizing reagent
Veeravagu Murugaiah1, Abdul Naim, Shiqi Peng
1Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, 300 Third Street, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA.
Abstract:
Commercially-available 4,4'-dimethyloctafluorobiphenyl was converted in a single step to 4-(4'-methyltetrafluorophenyl)-2,3,5,6-tetrafluorobenzyl bromide (MTFP-TFBBr) for the purpose of providing a new electrophoric derivatizing reagent. When reacted with this reagent, 2-fluoro-O6-(2'-hydroxyethyl)hypoxanthine, a model analyte, gave a mixture of isomeric products (apparently substituted at N7 and N9, analogous to its known reaction with pentafluorobenzyl bromide), and 53 femtograms of the mixture was detected at S/N = 10 by gas chromatography electron capture mass spectrometry (GC-EC-MS). As intended, the volatility of the MTFB-TFBBr derivative was much less (two-fold) than that of the corresponding pentafluorobenzyl derivative. It is anticipated that MTFB-TFBBr sometimes will be useful in providing an electrophoric derivative that encounters less background noise in analysis by electrophore derivatization/GC-EC-MS.
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