The first enantioselective total synthesis of the anti-Helicobacter pylori agent (+)-spirolaxine methyl ether

The first enantioselective synthesis of the anti-Helicobacter pylori agent (+)-spirolaxine methyl ether has been carried out in a convergent fashion by heterocycle-activated Julia olefination of a spiroacetal-containing sulfone fragment with a phthalide-containing aldehyde fragment. The total synthesis of (+)-spirolaxine methyl ether establishes the absolute stereochemistry of the natural product to be (3R,2'R,5'R,7'R).     

Formal total synthesis of (+)-diepoxin sigma

The highly oxygenated antifungal anticancer natural product (+/-)-diepoxin sigma was prepared in 10 steps and in 15% overall yield from O-methylnaphthazarin. Highlights of the synthetic work include an Ullmann coupling and a possibly biomimetic oxidative spirocyclization for the introduction of the naphthalene ketal as well as the use of a retro-Diels-Alder reaction to unmask the reactive enone moiety in the naphthoquinone bisepoxide ring system. A novel highly bulky chiral binaphthol ligand was developed for a boron-mediated Diels-Alder reaction that constitutes a formal asymmetric total synthesis of (+)-diepoxin sigma.     

Enantioselective synthesis of (+)- and (-)-dihydroepiepoformin and (+)-epiepoformin

[reaction: see text] The enantioselective synthesis of both enantiomers of dihydroepiepoformin (1) and (+)-epiepoformin (2) was achieved from (p-tolylsulfinyl)methyl-p-quinols (SR)- or (SS)-3 and (4R,SR)-4, respectively. Key features include the stereocontrolled conjugate addition of AlMe3 to p-quinol 3 and retrocondensation to the ketone functionality, previous to oxidation of the beta-hydroxy sulfoxide moiety of advanced intermediates to the corresponding sulfone.     

Kinetic Resolution of β‐Sulfonyl Ketones through Enantioselective β‐Elimination using a Cation‐Binding Polyether Catalyst

Reported herein is the first enantioselective β‐elimination reaction catalyzed by a chiral cation‐binding polyether. By using this catalytic protocol, a wide range of β‐sulfonyl ketones could be effectively resolved with high stereoselectivity (S up to >300). Key to the success of this process is the favorable secondary interactions of the catalyst with the Lewis basic groups on the sulfone substrate. The enone product of this process can be easily converted into the racemic starting material, and allows an effective recycling and overall synthesis of chiral β‐sulfonyl ketones in high yield and excellent enantioselectivity.     

Asymmetric synthesis of functionalized aza-cyclic amino acids with quaternary stereocenters by a phase-transfer-catalyzed alkylation strategy

[Reaction: see text] Practical asymmetric synthesis of functionalized aza-cyclic alpha-amino acid derivatives possessing quaternary stereocenters has been achieved by the phase-transfer-catalyzed alkylation of 2 or 3 using chiral quaternary ammonium bromide 1 as catalyst. Subsequent reduction and alkylation of the 3-keto carbonyl moiety of 4 proceeded with complete diastereochemical control to afford the corresponding beta-hydroxy aza-cyclic alpha-amino acid derivatives having stereochemically defined consecutive quaternary carbon centers.     

A second-generation total synthesis of (+)-discodermolide: the development of a practical route using solely substrate-based stereocontrol

A novel total synthesis of the complex polyketide (+)-discodermolide, a promising anticancer agent of sponge origin, has been completed in 7.8% overall yield over 24 linear steps, with 35 steps altogether. This second-generation approach was designed to rely solely on substrate control for introduction of the required stereochemistry, eliminating the use of all chiral reagents or auxiliaries. The common 1,2-anti-2,3-syn stereotriad found in each of three subunits, aldehyde 9 (C(1)-C(5)), ester 40 (C(9)-C(16)), and aldehyde 13 (C(17)-C(24)), was established via a boron-mediated aldol reaction of ethyl ketone 15 and formaldehyde, followed by hydroxyl-directed reduction to give 1,3-diol 14. Alternatively, a surrogate aldehyde 22 was employed for formaldehyde in this aldol reaction, leading to the beta-hydroxy aldehyde 20 as a common building block, corresponding to the discodermolide stereotriad. Key fragment unions were achieved by a lithium-mediated anti aldol reaction of ester 40 and aldehyde 13 under Felkin-Anh control to provide (16S,17S)-adduct 51 and a boron-mediated aldol reaction between enone 10 and aldehyde 9, exploiting unprecedented remote 1,6-stereoinduction, to give the (5S)-adduct 57.     

Synthesis of the anti-Helicobacter pylori agent (+)-spirolaxine methyl ether and the unnatural (2"S)-diastereomer

The first enantioselective synthesis of the anti-Heliocbacter pylori agent (+)-spirolaxine methyl ether 2b has been carried out in a convergent fashion establishing that the absolute stereochemistry of the natural product is in fact (3R, 2"R, 5"R, 7"R) after initial synthesis of the unnatural (2"S)-diastereomer 2a. The key step in the synthesis of (+)-spirolaxine methyl ether 2b involved a heterocycle-activated Julia-Kocienski olefination between benzothiazole-based spiroacetal sulfone 4b and phthalide aldehyde 3a. (2"R, 5"S, 7"S)-Spiroacetal sulfone 4b was prepared via cyclisation of protected dihydroxyketone 6b, which in turn was derived from the coupling of the acetylide derived from (R)-acetylene 24b with aldehyde 3a. Phthalide aldehyde 3a was prepared via intramolecular acylation of bromocarbamate 15, which was available via titanium tetrafluoride-(+)-BINOL-mediated allylation of 3,5-dimethoxybenzaldehyde 13. Union of the sulfone 4b and aldehyde 3a fragments successfully completed the enantioselective synthesis of (+)-spirolaxine methyl ether 2b. The synthesis of the unnatural (3R, 2"S, 5"R, 7"R)-diastereomer of spirolaxine methyl ether 2a was also undertaken in a similar manner by union of phthalide aldehyde 3a with (2"S, 5"S, 7"S)-spiroacetal sulfone 4a derived from (S)-acetylene 24a.     

A Concise, Enantioselective Synthesis of (-)- and (+)-Hongconin

Optically pure enone 9c, available in three steps from known 6-deoxy D-galactal derivative 7b, reacts with cyanophthalide 6 to directly afford the natural product (-)-hongconin (1), a compound from traditional Chinese medicine recently shown to exhibit antianginal activity. The enantiomer of 1 and its (+)-cis-diastereomer were also synthesized in a parallel fashion from the L-sugar counterpart. The use of C-glycoside Michael acceptors, as opposed to their O-glycoside counterparts, represents a potentially useful simplification of phthalide annulation methodology in synthesizing numerous other such optically pure isochromanquinoids, since it obviates the inconvenience of additional steps late in the synthetic scheme associated with reductive manipulation of a remaining acetal moiety into the desired pyran ring substituent.     

Total Syntheses of (+)‐Grandilodine C and (+)‐Lapidilectine B and Determination of their Absolute Stereochemistry

Enantioselective total syntheses of the Kopsia alkaloids (+)‐grandilodine C and (+)‐lapidilectine B were accomplished. A key intermediate, spirodiketone, was synthesized in 3 steps and converted into the chiral enone by enantioselective deprotonation followed by oxidation with up to 76 % ee. Lactone formation was achieved through stereoselective vinylation followed by allylation and ozonolysis. The total synthesis of (+)‐grandilodine C was achieved by palladium‐catalyzed intramolecular allylic amination and ring‐closing metathesis to give 8‐ and 5‐membered heterocycles, respectively. Selective reduction of a lactam carbonyl gave (+)‐lapidilectine B. The absolute stereochemistry of both natural products was thereby confirmed. These syntheses enable the scalable preparation of the above alkaloids for biological studies.     

(S,S)-(+)-pseudoephedrine alpha-iminoglyoxylamide as a chiral glycine cation equivalent: a modular and flexible approach to enantioenriched alpha-amino ketones

We have studied the ability of an alpha-imino glyoxylamide derived from (S, S)-(+)-pseudoephedrine as a valuable chiral electrophile for the preparation of alpha-amino carbonyl compounds. In this context, the addition of Grignard reagents to the azomethine moiety of this chiral electrophile afforded the expected alpha-amino amide adducts in good yields and diastereoselectivities. Moreover, these adducts have been transformed into enantioenriched alpha-amino ketones by exploiting the ability of pseudoephedrine amides to undergo selective monoaddition to the carbamoyl group with organolithium reagents.     

Synthesis of diastereomeric,deoxy and ring-expanded sulfone analogues of aigialomycin D

Several analogues of the fungal natural product aigialomycin D (AmD) have been synthesised. These include the stereoisomer 5′R,6′S-AmD, 2,4-di-deoxyAmD, 1′,2′,7′,8′-tetrahydroAmD and a 15-membered macrocyclic sulfone. Growth inhibitory activities of these compounds against the HL-60 leukaemic cell line were measured. The ring-expanded sulfone and tetrahydro-analogue were found to have similar IC₅₀ values to the natural product, whereas the 5′R,6′S-stereoisomer was inactive. Energy minimisation of AmD and the synthesised analogues resulted in a range of lowest energy conformers, from planar, open arrangements of the macrocycle in AmD and tetrahydroAmD to bent, L-shaped structures for the sulfone. The synthesis of methyl orsellinate was investigated and optimised as part of this work. A stereodivergent route to both enantiomers of the diol fragment from d-ribose was also achieved.     

Asymmetric synthesis of rubiginones A(2) and C(2) and their 11-methoxy regioisomers

Convergent enantioselective syntheses of angucyclinone-type natural products rubiginones A(2) (2) and C(2) (1) and their 11-methoxy regioisomers 3 a and 3 b have been achieved by using two domino processes from a common enantiomerically pure 1-vinylcyclohexene 4. Key steps in the synthesis of this diene were the stereoselective conjugate addition of AlMe(3) on (SS)-[(p-tolylsulfinyl)methyl]-p-quinol (9) and the elimination of the beta-hydroxy sulfoxide fragment, after oxidation to sulfone, to recover a carbonyl group. The first domino sequence comprised Diels-Alder reaction with a sulfinyl naphthoquinone followed by sulfoxide elimination. An efficient opposite regioselection in the cycloaddition step was achieved in the convergent construction of the tetracyclic skeleton using a sulfoxide at C-2 or C-3 of the dienophiles 5 or 6, derived from 5-methoxy-1,4-naphthoquinone. The second domino process, triggered by oxygen and sunlight, allowed the transformation of the initial tetracyclic adducts into the final products after B ring aromatization, silyl deprotection and C-1 oxidation.     

Asymmetric reduction of beta-ketonitriles with a recombinant carbonyl reductase and enzymatic transformation to optically pure beta-hydroxy carboxylic acids

Alpha-ethylation is concomitant with the reduction of aromatic beta-ketonitriles catalyzed by whole-cell biocatalysts. Use of isolated carbonyl reductase has completely eliminated this competing reaction. (R)-beta-Hydroxy nitriles were obtained via a reduction catalyzed by a recombinant carbonyl reductase with excellent optical purity and were further converted to (R)-beta-hydroxy carboxylic acids via a nitrilase-catalyzed hydrolysis. The present study allows ready access to both chiral beta-hydroxy nitriles and beta-hydroxy carboxylic acids of pharmaceutical importance.     

2,8'-disubstituted-1,1'-binaphthyls: a new pattern in chiral ligands

The title binaphthyls 19 and 26, which are the positional isomers of 2-methoxy-2'-(diphenylphosphino)-1,1'-binaphthyl (MOP, 19) and 2-amino-2'-hydroxy-1,1'-binaphthyl (NOBIN, 26), have been synthesized by Suzuki coupling as the key step (10 + 15-->18), followed by functional group transformations, involving C-P and C-N bond formation (18-->19 and 18-->23). Racemic intermediate 22 was resolved by co-crystallization with N-benzylcinchonidinium chloride and the absolute configuration determined by X-ray crystallography. These novel binaphthyls are configurationally stable and, as such, potentially usable as chiral ligands in asymmetric reactions. Michael addition of the glycine-derived enolate 40 to methyl acrylate, carried out in the presence of (R)-(-)-27 as the chiral phase-transfer catalyst, afforded L-glutamic acid (S)-(+)-43 of 92% ee (after hydrolysis of the primary product).     

Direct catalytic asymmetric aldol-type reaction of aldehydes with ethyl diazoacetate

The direct aldol-type condensation of aldehydes with ethyl diazoacetate catalyzed by the chiral complex of BINOL derivatives-Zr(O(t)Bu)(4) gave beta-hydroxy alpha-diazo carbonyl compounds with moderate enantioselectivities (53-87% ee). [reaction: see text]     

Absolute structures of some naturally occurring isopropenyldihydrobenzofurans,remirol, remiridiol,angenomalin, and isoangenomalin

The absolute structures of some naturally occurring chiral 2-isopropenyl-2,3-dihydrobenzofurans, (+)-remirol (1a), (+)-remiridiol (1b), (+)-angenomalin (2), and (+)-isoangenomalin (3), were studied by respective chiral synthesis. Kinetic resolutions of racemic 2-isopropenyl-2,3-dihydrobenzofurans, 2-isopropenyl-4,6-dimethoxy-2,3-dihydrobenzofuran (4), 4-hydroxy-2-isopropenyl-2,3-dihydrobenzofuran-5-carbaldehyde (8), and 2-isopropenyl-6-(MOM)oxy-2,3-dihydrobenzofuran-5-carbaldehyde (11c), by Sharpless dihydroxylation using (DHQ)(2)AQN or (DHQD)(2)AQN gave the corresponding chiral 2-isopropenyl-2,3-dihydrobenzofurans. Chiral (S)-(+)-4 (99% ee, using (DHQD)(2)AQN) was converted to natural remirol (S)-(+)-1a and then to natural remiridiol (S)-(+)-1b. (S)-(+)-8 (97% ee, using (DHQD)(2)AQN) was converted to natural angenomalin (S)-(+)-2. (R)-(-)-11c (>99% ee, using (DHQ)(2)AQN), was converted to natural isoangenomalin (R)-(+)-3. Thus, the absolute structures of natural remirol (+)-1a and remiridiol (+)-1b and angenomalin (+)-2 were determined to be S, and the structure of natural isoangenomalin (+)-3 was R.     

Total synthesis and absolute stereochemical assignment of (+)- and (-)-galbulimima alkaloid 13

We describe the total synthesis of (+)- and (-)-galbulimima alkaloid 13. The absolute stereochemistry of natural (-)-galbulimima alkaloid 13 is revised to 2S. Sequential use of catalytic cross-coupling and cross-metathesis reactions followed by an intramolecular Diels-Alder reaction provided the required trans-decalin AB-ring system and masked the C16 carbonyl as an N-vinyl carbamate for late-stage unveiling in the form of the necessary C16 enone. A vinyl radical cyclization secured the C-ring, while successful execution of our strategy for introduction of the CDE-ring system in complex galbulimima alkaloids provided the target pentacycle with complete diastereoselection.     

Stereoselective Synthesis of the Proposed C79–C104 Fragment of Symbiodinolide

Stereoselective and streamlined synthesis of the proposed C79–C104 fragment 2 of symbiodinolide ( 1 ), a polyol marine natural product with a molecular weight of 2860, was achieved. In the synthetic route, the proposed C79–C104 fragment 2 was synthesized by utilizing a Julia–Kocienski olefination and subsequent Sharpless asymmetric dihydroxylation as key transformations in a convergent manner. Detailed comparison of the ¹³C NMR chemical shifts between the natural product and the synthetic C79–C104 fragment 2 revealed that the stereostructure at the C91–C99 carbon chain moiety of symbiodinolide ( 1 ) should be reinvestigated.     

An Unexpected Asymmetric Reduction of 4-(1-Nitro-2-oxocyclododecyl)butan-2-one. Determination of the absolute configuration of (‒)-15-hexadecanolide

Reduction of the carbonyl group in the side chain of 4-(1-nitro-2-oxocyclododecyl)butan-2-one ( 3 ) with organoboron complexes are influenced by the chiral center, in 4-position with respect to the carbonyl C-atom, to which the NO₂ group is attached, a rare type for an asymmetric reduction. Independent of the (R)- or (S)-configuration of the Alpine-Hydride, (+)- 3 is reduced only to the (15S)-nitrolactone (+)- 5 and, after subsequent transformations, to (+)-(-S)-15-hexadecanolide ((+)- 1 ), enantiomer of the naturally occurring (?)- 1 .     

Total synthesis of (+)-rishirilide B: development and application of general processes for enantioselective oxidative dearomatization of resorcinol derivatives

A concise synthesis of (+)-rishirilide B (2) is described. This is the first synthesis to be reported for the (+)-enantiomer of rishirilide B (2) as found in nature. The strategy accentuates the valuable combination of a method for o-quinone methide coupling with a method for enantioselective resorcinol dearomatization, which provides a densely functionalized chiral building block. The convergent synthesis illustrates several improvements and refinements to these methods and their supporting chemistries. Among these is the in situ generation of PhI[OTMS]OTf. Combination of this oxidant with phenol 31 constitutes the first example of a diastereoselective oxidative dearomatization of a resorcinol displaying a 2-alkyl substituent. In addition, the preparation of the cyclic sulfone 34 is reported. As a new dimethide precursor expressing a readily cleavable O-benzyl residue, sulfone 34 should prove useful in future endeavors. A protocol using the aluminum amide of dimethylhydrazine for opening and cleavage of a [1,4]-dioxan-2-one is also described. This procedure unmasks the hydroxy dione 36 by jettisoning the chiral directing group. Regioselective O-carbamylation of the 1,3-dione 36 enables the transformation of the remaining carbonyl into the alpha-hydroxy carboxylic acid found in 2. The total synthesis of (+)-rishirilide B (2) requires 15 pots from benzaldehyde 17 and 13 pots from benzaldehyde 32. The final product emerges in yields of 12.5% and 20.3% from compounds 17 and 32, respectively. The longest linear sequence requires eight chromatographies. Important observations leading to the development of the principle asymmetric method are described within the context of the total synthesis.