Efficient synthesis of the GABAA receptor agonist trans-4-aminocrotonic acid (TACA).

Investigations into the pharmacology of different types of cys-loop GABA receptor have relied for years on the chemical modification of GABA-like compounds. The GABA metabolite GABOB is an attractive molecule to modify due to its convenient chemical structure. In the process of developing new GABA-mimic compounds from GABOB as a starting compound three small molecule GABA derivatives were synthesized using a variety of chemical transformations. Amongst these, a new and reliable method to synthesize TACA (trans-4-aminocrotonic acid) is reported.