Sulfonamide

For the medical use of chemicals within this group, see Sulfonamide (medicine).
Not to be confused with Sulfamide.
The structure of the sulfonamide group

In organic chemistry, the sulfonamide functional group (also spelled sulphonamide) is an organosulfur group with the structure R−S(=O)2−NR2. It consists of a sulfonyl group (O=S=O) connected to an amine group (−NH2). Relatively speaking this group is unreactive. Because of the rigidity of the functional group, sulfonamides are typically crystalline; for this reason, the formation of a sulfonamide is a classic method to convert an amine into a crystalline derivative which can be identified by its melting point. Many important drugs contain the sulfonamide group.[1]

A sulfonamide (compound) is a chemical compound that contains this group. The general formula is R−SO2NR'R" or R−S(=O)2−NR'R", where each R is some organic group; for example, "methanesulfonamide" (where R = methane, R' = R" = hydrogen) is CH3SO2NH2. Any sulfonamide can be considered as derived from a sulfonic acid by replacing a hydroxyl group (−OH) with an amine group.

In medicine, the term "sulfonamide" is sometimes used as a synonym for sulfa drug, a derivative or variation of sulfanilamide. The first sulfonamide was discovered in Germany in 1932.[2]

  1. ^ Actor, P.; Chow, A. W.; Dutko, F. J.; McKinlay, M. A. "Chemotherapeutics". Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry. Weinheim: Wiley-VCH. doi:10.1002/14356007.a06_173. ISBN 978-3527306732.{{cite encyclopedia}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ Levy, Stuart B. (2002). The antibiotic paradox : how the misuse of antibiotics destroys their curative powers (2 ed.). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Perseus Publ. p. 51. ISBN 9780738204406.