Sulfoxide‐Based Enantioselective Nazarov Cyclization: Divergent Syntheses of (+)‐Isopaucifloral F, (+)‐Quadrangularin A,and (+)‐Pallidol

The synthesis of enantiomerically pure 3‐aryl substituted indanones is developed using an enantioselective sulfoxide‐based Knoevenagel condensation/Nazarov cyclization procedure. After the reductive desulfonation of the methyl para‐tolyl sulfoxide‐containing chiral auxiliary under mild conditions, selected enantiomerically pure indanone is used for the divergent total syntheses of three resveratrol natural products (+)‐isopaucifloral F, (+)‐quadrangularin A, and (+)‐pallidol.     

Self‐Assembly of Disorazole C1 through a One‐Pot Alkyne Metathesis Homodimerization Strategy

Alkyne metathesis is increasingly explored as a reliable method to close macrocyclic rings, but there are no prior examples of an alkyne‐metathesis‐based homodimerization approach to natural products. In this approach to the cytotoxic C₂‐symmetric marine‐derived bis(lactone) disorazole C₁, a highly convergent, modular strategy is employed featuring cyclization through an ambitious one‐pot alkyne cross‐metathesis/ring‐closing metathesis self‐assembly process.     

Collective Synthesis of Cladiellins Based on the Gold‐Catalyzed Cascade Reaction of 1,7‐Diynes

The cladiellin family of natural products, which includes molecules with various biological activities, continues to invite new synthetic studies. A gold‐catalyzed tandem reaction of 1,7‐diynes to construct the 6‐5‐bicyclic ring systems that are present in a number of natural products was developed. This reaction was applied as the key step to realize the formal and total syntheses of nine members of the cladiellin family in an enantio‐ and diastereoselective manner. This modular and efficient approach could also be used for the construction of other cladiellins, as well as their analogues, for follow‐up studies.     

Palladium‐Catalyzed Intramolecular Trost–Oppolzer‐Type Alder–Ene Reaction of Dienyl Acetates to Cyclopentadienes

A new approach to the synthesis of highly substituted cyclopentadienes, indenes, and cyclopentene‐fused heteroarenes by means of the Pd‐catalyzed Trost–Oppolzer‐type intramolecular Alder–ene reaction of 2,4‐pentadienyl acetates is described. This unprecedented transformation combines the electrophilic features of the Tsuji–Trost reaction with the nucleophilic features of the Alder–ene reaction. The overall outcome can be perceived as a hitherto unknown “acid‐free” iso‐Nazarov‐type cyclization. The versatility of this strategy was further demonstrated by the formal synthesis of paucifloral F, a resveratrol‐based natural product.     

Liquid chromatographic/electrospray ionization mass spectrometric identification of the oxidation end‐products of trans‐resveratrol in aqueous solutions

trans‐Resveratrol (3,5,4′‐trihydroxystilbene) is a natural polyphenolic compound that exhibits antioxidant properties. Our study aimed at studying the HO ^. ‐induced oxidation of resveratrol (100 µmol.L^?1) in aerated aqueous solutions. Gamma radiolysis of water was used to generate HO ^. /O free radicals (I = 10 Gy.min^?1, dose = 400 Gy). Oxidation products were identified by direct infusion mass spectrometry and high‐performance liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry. For each product, structural elucidation was based on simple mass spectra, fragmentation spectra and deuterium/hydrogen exchange spectra; the comparison with mass spectra of synthetic products provided valuable information allowing the complete identification of the oxidation products. Four products resulting from the direct attack of HO ^. radicals towards resveratrol were identified respectively as piceatannol (trans‐3,5,3′,4′‐tetrahydroxystilbene), 3,5‐dihydroxybenzoic acid, 3,5‐dihydroxybenzaldehyde and 4‐hydroxybenzaldehyde. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Novel Carbazole‐Based N‐Heterocyclic Carbene Ligands to Access Synthetically Relevant Stilbenes in Pd‐Catalyzed Coupling Processes

A series of new carbazole‐based N‐heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands have been synthesized in a simple and facile synthetic route and subsequently used in a Pd/carbazole‐based NHC catalytic system, which was found to be effective in catalyzing Heck reactions to provide substituted stilbene derivatives in good yields. Several bioactive stilbenes, including pterostilbene, pinosylvin, trimethoxy resveratrol, and resveratrol, were synthesized in good yields, and a 10 mmol scale‐up was also performed for trimethoxy resveratrol. The synthetic application was also extended by performing a double‐tandem chemoselective Heck reaction followed by Miyaura borylation in a one‐pot procedure to give single‐step access to synthetically useful stilbenyl boronate esters. Similarly, a unique triple‐tandem protocol of a chemoselective Heck reaction/Miyaura borylation/Suzuki–Miyaura coupling reaction sequence was performed for the one‐pot modification of biologically relevant molecules.     

Nazarov Cyclization of Divinyl and Arylvinyl Epoxides: Application in the Synthesis of Resveratrol‐Based Natural Products

New variation in the Nazarov cyclization has been developed by preparing divinyl and arylvinyl epoxides as pentadienyl cation precursors for the first time. Highly substituted cyclopentadienes, hydrindienes, and indenes were synthesized to demonstrate the compatibility of this reaction with substrates bearing a variety of substitutions and having different types of epoxides. Application of this method in the synthesis of resveratrol‐based natural products was also demonstrated.     

An Orthogonal D2O‐Based Induction System that Provides Insights into d‐Amino Acid Pattern Formation by Radical S‐Adenosylmethionine Peptide Epimerases

Radical S‐adenosyl methionine peptide epimerases (RSPEs) are an enzyme family that accomplishes regiospecific and irreversible introduction of multiple d ‐configured residues into ribosomally encoded peptides. Collectively, RSPEs can generate diverse epimerization patterns in a wide range of substrates. Previously, the lack of rapid methods to localize epimerized residues has impeded efforts to investigate the function and applicative potential of RSPEs. An efficient mass spectrometry‐based assay is introduced that permits characterization of products generated in E. coli . Applying this to a range of non‐natural peptide‐epimerase combinations, it is shown that the d ‐amino acid pattern is largely but not exclusively dictated by the core peptide sequence, while the epimerization order is dependent on the enzyme‐leader pair. RSPEs were found to be highly promiscuous, which allowed for modular introduction of peptide segments with defined patterns.     

Cascade Mn‐Mediated γ‐Alkylation/oxa‐Michael Addition of Enones with 1,3‐Dicarbonyls

A radical‐based strategy for regioselective γ‐C?C bond formation/oxa‐conjugate addition, forming the tetrahydrobenzofuran core common to many bioactive natural products is described. The technique utilizes readily available enone derivatives and 1,3‐dicarbonyl compounds as coupling partners in an oxidative formal [3+2] cycloaddition mediated by Mn^III. The transformation delivers polycyclic products in good yields and proceeds with complete regiocontrol and excellent stereoselectivity. Sterically encumbered substrates are notably well‐tolerated and bond formation occurs readily to form neopentyl and all‐carbon quaternary centers in good yields. Several stereo‐ and chemoselective transformations of the products are described.     

Harnessing Quinone Methides: Total Synthesis of (±)‐Vaticanol A

Although quinone methides are often postulated as intermediates in the biosynthesis of many polyphenolic natural products, deploying their power in a laboratory setting to achieve similar bond constructions has sometimes proven challenging. Herein, a total synthesis of the resveratrol trimer vaticanol A has been achieved through three instances of quinone methide chemistry. These operations, one of which succeeded only under very specific conditions, expediently generated its [7,5]‐carbocyclic core, afforded a unique sequence for dihydrobenzofuran formation, and concurrently generated, in addition to the target molecule, a series of diastereomers reflective of many other isolates.     

A rapid assay for angiotensin‐converting enzyme activity using ultra‐performance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry

Angiotensin‐converting enzyme (ACE) plays an important role in the renin–angiotensin system and ACE activity is usually assayed in vitro by monitoring the transformation from a substrate to the product catalyzed by ACE. A rapid and sensitive analysis method or ACE activity by quantifying simultaneously the substrate hippuryl–histidyl–leucine and its product hippuric acid using an ultra‐performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization‐mass spectrometry (UPLC‐MS) was first developed and applied to assay the inhibitory activities against ACE of several natural phenolic compounds. The established UPLC‐MS method showed obvious advantages over the conventional HPLC analysis in shortened running time (3.5 min), lower limit of detection (5 pg) and limit of quantification (18 pg), and high selectivity aided by MS detection in selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode. Among the six natural products screened, five compounds, caffeic acid, caffeoyl acetate, ferulic acid, chlorogenic acid and resveratrol indicated potent in vitro ACE inhibitory activity with IC₅₀ values of 2.527 ± 0.032, 3.129 ± 0.016, 10.898 ± 0.430, 15.076 ± 1.211 and 6.359 ± 0.086 mm , respectively. A structure–activity relationship estimation suggested that the number and the situation of the hydroxyls on the benzene rings and the acrylic acid groups may play the most predominant role in their ACE inhibitory activity. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sustainable,fire‐resistant phthalonitrile‐based glass fiber composites

The sustainable resveratrol‐based phthalonitrile was used in the preparation of E‐glass fiber‐reinforced phthalonitrile composite panels fabricated by hot pressed prepreg consolidation with bis[4‐(3‐aminophenoxy)phenyl]sulfone (m‐BAPS) as the curing additive. This amorphous monomer exhibited excellent viscosities at temperatures below 200 °C, which is applicable to standard processing conditions. Rheometric measurements were used to evaluate the cure of the composite as a function of the postcure conditions. The composite retains >95% of its room temperature storage modulus up to 450 °C based on these postcuring parameters. More importantly, flammability performance of the composite—which was determined in terms of ignitability, heat release, and mass loss rate—excels over other state‐of‐the‐art polymer/glass composites. Even under the most extreme heat fluxes (e.g., 100 kW⋅m⁻²), the composite performs exceptionally well suggesting that resveratrol‐based phthalonitrile composites can be used in fire‐resistant applications. Published 2018.^† J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2018 , 56, 1128–1132     

Enantioselective Organocatalytic Construction of Spiroindane Derivatives by Intramolecular Friedel–Crafts‐Type 1,4‐Addition

The highly enantioselective organocatalytic construction of spiroindanes containing an all‐carbon quaternary stereocenter by intramolecular Friedel–Crafts‐type 1,4‐addition is described. The reaction was catalyzed by a cinchonidine‐based primary amine and accelerated by water and p‐bromophenol. A variety of spiro compounds containing quaternary stereocenters were obtained with excellent enantioselectivity (up to 95 % ee). The reaction was applied to the asymmetric formal synthesis of the spirocyclic natural products (?)‐cannabispirenones A and B.     

Synthesis and Evaluation of a 2,11‐Cembranoid‐Inspired Library

The 2,11‐cembranoid family of natural products has been used as inspiration for the synthesis of a structurally simplified, functionally diverse library of octahydroisobenzofuran‐based compounds designed to augment a typical medicinal chemistry library screen. Ring‐closing metathesis, lactonisation and SmI₂‐mediated methods were exemplified and applied to the installation of a third ring to mimic the nine‐membered ring of the 2,11‐cembranoids. The library was assessed for aqueous solubility and permeability, with a chemical‐space analysis performed for comparison to the family of cembranoid natural products and a sample set of a screening library. Preliminary investigations in cancer cells showed that the simpler scaffolds could recapitulate the reported anti‐migratory activity of the natural products.     

Total Syntheses of (+)‐Polygalolide A and (+)‐Polygalolide B: Elucidation of the Absolute Stereochemistry and Biogenetic Implications

The total syntheses of (+)‐polygalolide A and (+)‐polygalolide B have been completed by using a carbonyl ylide cycloaddition strategy. Three of the four stereocenters, including two consecutive tetrasubstituted carbon atoms at C2 and C8, were incorporated through internal asymmetric induction from the stereocenter at C7 by a [Rh₂(OAc)₄]‐catalyzed carbonyl ylide formation/intramolecular 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition sequence. The arylmethylidene moiety of these natural products was successfully installed by a Mukaiyama aldol‐type reaction of a silyl enol ether with a dimethyl acetal, followed by elimination under basic conditions. We have also developed an alternative approach to the carbonyl ylide precursor based on a hetero‐Michael reaction. This approach requires 18 steps, and the natural products were obtained in 9.8 and 9.3 % overall yields. Comparison of specific rotations of the synthetic materials and natural products suggests that polygalolides are biosynthesized in nearly racemic forms through a [5+2] cycloaddition between a fructose‐derived oxypyrylium zwitterion with an isoprene derivative.     

Sequential Cross‐Coupling/Annulation of ortho‐Vinyl Bromobenzenes with Aromatic Bromides for the Synthesis of Polycyclic Aromatic Compounds

A sequential cross‐coupling/annulation of ortho‐vinyl bromobenzenes with aromatic bromides was realized, providing a direct and modular approach to access polycyclic aromatic compounds. A vinyl‐coordinated palladacycle was proposed as the key intermediate for this sequential process. Excellent chemoselectivity and regioselectivity were observed in this transformation. The practicability of this method is highlighted by its broad substrate scope, excellent functional group tolerance, and rich transformations associated with the obtained products.     

A Concise Total Synthesis of (±)‐Vibralactone

Disclosed is a five‐step synthesis of (±)‐vibralactone, a biologically active terpenoid natural product. A key photochemical valence isomerization of 3‐prenyl‐pyran‐2‐one produces both the all‐carbon quaternary stereocenter and the β‐lactone at an early stage. Cyclopropanation of the resulting bicyclic β‐lactone produces a strained housane structure that is converted to the natural product through a sequential ring expansion and reduction strategy. This concise and modular route to the natural product provides the shortest total synthesis of (±)‐vibralactone reported to date.     

A Modular Approach to Dibenzo‐fused ϵ‐Lactams: Palladium‐Catalyzed Bridging‐C−H Activation

Tricyclic ring systems possessing a dibenzo structure joined to a seven‐membered heterocyclic ring frequently show important biological activities. However, a modular approach to these molecules based on efficient intermolecular reaction of readily available chemicals is lacking. Herein, an unprecedented palladium‐catalyzed formal [4+3] annulation for modular construction of these tricyclic systems is described. This reaction features easily accessible reactants (o‐haloarylaldehydes and N‐tosylhydrazones), broad substrate scope, and excellent functional group compatibility. The synthetic potential is demonstrated by the easy scale‐up reactions, late‐stage modification of complex molecules, and collective synthesis of bioactive molecules and approved drugs.     

Isomeric Effect on H/D Exchange of Resveratrol Studied by NMR Spectroscopy

Resveratrol (3,5,4′‐trihydroxylstilbene), a phytoalexin in response to injury or fungal attack, is found in grapes and other food products. It has been well documented that the compound has beneficial effects as hypolipidemic, anticancer, antiviral, neuroprotective, antiaging, and anti‐inflammatory natural active principle. It was observed that both trans‐ and cis‐resveratrols undergo hydrogen‐deuterium (H/D) exchange at H‐2,6 and H‐4 positions of the A‐ring. The exchange rates were determined by ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The results reveal that the exchange rates are configuration and pH dependent. Derivative of 2‐O‐β‐D‐glucoside can significantly speed up the H/D exchange reactions for both isomers. The trans‐resveratrol experiences faster H/D exchanging than the cis‐resveratrol. Such isomeric effect is possibly due to the factor that the trans‐resveratrol is in favor of forming larger/super conjugative system and has less spatial interference. Theoretical calculation shows that electronegativity at these positions is in the order of H‐2,6>H‐4, which is in consistent with the exchange rates observed by NMR. The results may be of help in understanding the properties of resveratrol, and in analysis of resveratrol in natural products or body fluids using mass spectroscopy that occasionally requires stable deuterium isotope labeling.     

Brønsted Acid Catalyzed,Conjugate Addition of β‐Dicarbonyls to In Situ Generated ortho‐Quinone Methides—Enantioselective Synthesis of 4‐Aryl‐4H‐Chromenes

We describe herein a catalytic, enantioselective process for the synthesis of 4H‐chromenes which are important structural elements of many natural products and biologically active compounds. A sequence comprising a conjugate addition of β‐diketones to in situ generated ortho‐quinone methides followed by a cyclodehydration reaction furnished 4‐aryl‐4H‐chromenes in generally excellent yields and high optical purity. A BINOL‐based chiral phosphoric acid was employed as a Brønsted acid catalyst which converted ortho‐hydroxy benzhydryl alcohols into hydrogen‐bonded ortho‐quinone methides and effected the carbon–carbon bond‐forming event with high enantioselectivity.