2-Cyanoacetamide

White or light yellow needle crystal or powder. Slightly soluble in water, easily soluble in ethanol.

2-Cyanoacetamide was used in spectrofluorimetric method for the determination of some antihistaminic H1 receptor antagonist drugs such as ebastine, cetirizine dihydrochloride and fexofenadine hydrochloride. It may be used in fluorometric determination of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine. It was used as post column fluorigenic derivatizing agent for the bio-analysis and pharmacokinetics of chitosan ester in rabbit serum. Cyanoacetamide is the starting reagent for vitamin B6 synthesis. It reacts with reducing carbohydrates in borate buffer to give intense fluorescence and is useful for the automated analysis of carbohydrates as borate complexes. It can also be used in the synthesis of heterocyclic compounds such as pyrazole, pyridine and pyrimidine derivatives. Moreover, it can also be applied for the spectrophotometric assay of the enzyme activity of cellulose in related host cells.

Cyanoacetamide can be prepared from ethyl cyanoacetate and ammonia. Cool the ethyl cyanoacetate to below 200°C, add concentrated ammonia water to react, and the mixture turns from turbid to clear. After cooling in cold water for 20 minutes, a precipitate is precipitated. After filtration and drying, the crude product is obtained, and then the crude product of cyanoacetamide is added. In the boiling ethanol, after dissolving it, add a small amount of activated carbon for decolorization and purification, filter, cool the filtrate to separate out the precipitate, and dry it at 80-100 ℃ to obtain the fine cyanoacetamide.

2-Cyanoacetamide is an acetic amide with a nitrile functional group. It is a codon of glutamine that directs the placement of glutamine into a polypeptide.

Cyanoacetamide is the starting reagent for vitamin B₆ synthesis. It reacts with reducing carbohydrates in borate buffer to give intense fluorescence andis useful for the automated analysis of carbohydrates as borate complexes.

Crystallise the amide from MeOH/dioxane (6:4), then water and dry it over P2O5 under vacuum. [Beilstein 2 IV 1891.]