Investigating differences and similarities between betaxolol polymorphs

Betaxolol belongs to the class of ?1-adrenergic blocking agent. Several polymorphs of racemic betaxolol have been reported in the literature, but only one of them (BE_I) had the crystal structure determined from single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Here, we present a new crystalline phase of betaxolol (BE_IV). Its solid-state structure has been obtained from single-crystal X-ray diffraction data. The molecular and crystal arrangements of betaxolol in BE_IV have been further investigated by molecular modelling, by Cambridge Structural Database (CSD) surveys and by Hirshfeld surface analysis. A comparison with the solid-state structure of BE_I have been carried out. In the two polymorphs the 2-hydroxy-3-(isopropylamino)-propoxy chain, which is common to other ?-blocker drugs, adopts a different conformation. In addition, the rotational isomer found in BE_IV is different with respect to the four already observed in the solid-state structure of analogous compounds. In both the polymorphs, the most significant interaction is due to the H-bonds involving the OH group as donor and the NH as acceptor, while the interaction where OH works as acceptor (NH acts as donor) is definitely less important. The resulting H-bond patterns are however different: Alternate R2,2(10) a > a (OH donors) and R2,2(10) b > b (OH acceptors) in BE_I vs. alternate R4,4 (8) a > b > a > b (OH donors) and R2,2 (10) b > b (OH acceptor) in BE_IV.