Structural study of L-ascorbic acid 2-phosphate magnesium, a raw material in cell and tissue therapy

L-ascorbic acid 2-phosphate magnesium (APMg) salt is a vitamin C derivative frequently used as a raw material in cell and tissue therapy. APMg is not only used as a replacement of the unstable ascorbate, but also shows additional cell-biological functionalities. However, its unknown structural characteristics hamper the mechanistic elucidation of its biological role. Therefore, different techniques were applied for APMg structure characterization. Firstly, the stoichiometric composition was characterized by its solvent, ligand and magnesium content. No crystals of APMg could be obtained; however, a single crystal of APNa, the sodium salt of l-ascorbic acid 2-phosphate, was successfully obtained and its crystal structure was elucidated. FT-IR was applied to further clarify the structure of solid APMg. Finally, the structure of APMg in aqueous solution was explored by potentiometric titration as well as FT-IR.