Ab initio structure determination of rofecoxib from powder diffraction data using molecular packing analysis method and direct space method.

Crystal structures of a COX-II inhibitor, rofecoxib (Vioxx) were solved ab initio from X-ray powder diffraction pattern using both molecular packing analysis and direct space methods. The X-ray powder pattern was indexed into a tetragonal cell. Packing energies were generated and analyzed in eight most frequently found tetragonal space groups. The two space groups with the lowest total energy, P4(1)2(1)2 and P4(3)2(1)2, were used for direct space method with a Monte-Carlo/Simulated Annealing searching algorithm. Structural solutions obtained from direct space method were evaluated using molecular packing energy analysis. The structures solved ab initio from this work were compared to the single crystal structure deposited in the Cambridge Structural Database.