International Journal of Chemical Research, ISSN: 0975-3699, Volume 2, Issue 2, 2010, pp-17-20 17 Copyright © 2010, Bioinfo Publications, International Journal of Chemical Research, ISSN: 0975-3699, Volume 2, Issue 2, 2010 Synthesis of some new amides and their toxicological effect on an insect Spodoptera litura Saxena C.M.* 1 , Singh R.K. 1 , Sanjay Ashthana 2 , Archna Saxena 1 Research Laboratory; Department of Chemistry, D.B.S. P.G. College, Kanpur, India, drcmsaxena01@gmail.com Research Laboratory; Department of Chemistry, D.A.V. P.G. College, Kanpur, India Abstract- Some novel organic amides were synthesized by the reaction of glycine/cystiene and ethylene diamine with respective organic acids (succinic acid, maleic acid, tartaric acid and oxalic acid). The newly synthesized compounds were isolated as crystalline solid and have sharp melting point. The compounds were characterized by their elemental, I.R., NMR spectral analysis along with their activity against an insect responsible for the damage of Indian crops Spodoptera litura. It was found that the compounds show moderate efficacy against the insect. Key Wards: Glycine, ethylenediamine, succinic acid, maleic acid, oxalic acid, tartaric acid, insecticidal activity, Spodoptera litura. Introduction In recent year literature survey revealed that nitrogen and sulfur containing compounds [1-3] are potentially active against cancer, viral and fungal disease [4, 5]. Amines in general have been known to be biologically active [6] and the effect of presence of various constituents in the amines increases their antimicrobial and insecticidal activity, has been investigated [7, 8]. The compounds having amino acid have proven to be potentially active against various bacterial and fungal strains and many of them got wide acceptance in clinical trials [9, 10]. The differential inhibition of cytochrome P-450 between pathogenic bacterial and fungal strains and human beings is the basis for the clinically important amino acid as antimicrobial agents. It may be found that the inhibition can be determined by the differential complementarities between the structures of antimicrobial agent and the active sites of enzymes responsible for microbial activity. Insects are found in almost all types of environment. They affect man's interest in a number of ways; insects like mosquitoes and housefly spread large number of diseases like malaria, dengue and cholera in addition to painful bites. Further, the compounds containing amide moiety has also attracted attention due to their important role as insecticides and pesticides to save our Indian crops [11]. In view of the, important behavior of amines and amino acid, the present communication deals with the synthesis, characterization and insecticidal activity of some new amide of amino acid. Results and discussion The amide was generally prepared by using following method The newly prepared compounds were crystallized after vacuum distillation. The compounds have sharp melting point. The further characterization of these entire compounds was done by elemental analysis, I.R and NMR spectral data followed by antimicrobial activity. I.R. spectra The infrared spectra of newly synthesized amides of amino acids were recorded in KBr/CsI pellets in the range of 4000-200cm -1 . The I.R. spectra of the entire compound clearly exhibit absorption bands due to amides and methylene groups. The absorption frequencies due to carbonyl groups in amide have been fully assigned. 1 H-NMR spectra The 1 H-NMR spectra of the amide of amino acids were recorded in CDCl 3 at room temperature using TMS as standard. The peaks values suggested the presence of secondary amides group along with methylene groups in the compound. The peak’s located at δ8.0 ppm (for secondary amides) while the peaks value appears at δ2.46, δ3.46 and δ4.09 in case of compound (A) suggested the presence of six methylene group in the compound. The peaks values for other compounds are very close to the first compound indicating the presence of secondary amides and methylene proton. Contact toxicity The contact toxicity of the compounds is given in Table-2. It was found that approximately all these compounds are active against the insect larvae of Spodoptera litura in different concentrations. The compounds 3, 4 and 5 show higher toxicity against the larvae while the rest of the compounds show moderate toxicity. These compounds are generally used as emulsion by adding tween 20 emulsifier in the dissolved compounds. The emulsion of the compounds then applies on the dorsal surface of the insect which affect the nervous systems of the insect larvae and ultimately causing death of the insects. Stomach toxicity The stomach toxicity of the compounds was given in Table-3. The toxicity of these