Synthetic studies on (-)-FR182877: construction of the ABCD ring system via the intramolecular cycloadditions (1)

Construction of the ABCD ring system of (-)-FR182877 via the highly diastereoselective intramolecular Diels-Alder (IMDA) reaction is described. The IMDA reaction of the α,β-unsaturated aldehyde generated in situ from the corresponding acetal successfully provided the desired product 14 possessing the AB ring system as the single diastereomer. The CD ring system was constructed by the subsequent IMHDA reaction and the additional experiment suggested that the diastereoselectivity of the IMHDA reaction could be related to the E/Z geometry of alkene 17, which was generated in situ from 16.     

A new and efficient synthetic route to enantiopure (+)-anatoxin-a from (−)-cocaine hydrochloride

The potent nAChR agonist (+)-anatoxin-a was efficiently synthesized in enantiomerically pure form starting from a readily available confiscated grade (−)-cocaine hydrochloride. The eight-step synthesis providing novel extensions to existing methodology proceeded with 26% overall yield and with stereochemical integrity of the relevant original stereogenic centers. Key steps were an effective ring expansion of the (+)-2-tropinone 2 to the 9-azabicyclo[4.2.1]nonanone 5 with TMSCHN₂/Al(CH₃)₃ and the introduction of the required methyl ketone side chain in masked form by reacting the corresponding enol triflate 6 with ethyl vinyl ether/Pd(OAc₂) under Heck reaction conditions.     

Synthesis of podophyllotoxin analogues: δ-lactone-containing picropodophyllin, podophyllotoxin and 4′-demethyl-epipodophyllotoxin derivatives

Non-epimerizable cis and trans δ-lactone analogues of podophyllotoxin have been prepared. Thus the synthesis of the cis isomer 4 has been achieved in 8 steps and 4% overall yield from podophyllotoxin 1 via the reduction of the γ lactone ring into the trans diol, selective protection of the 4-OH and 11-OH as a benzylidene acetal, and Wittig elongation at C-13 with inversion of configuration at C-2. Same elongation at C-13 but via the formation of a mesylate and introduction of a cyano group, led to the trans δ-lactone 5 (7 steps from 1 and 6% overall yied) with a small amount of its C-4 epimer 6. The synthesis of non-epimerizable δ-lactone analogues of 4′-demethyl-epipodophyllotoxin 7 and of 4-demethyl podophyllotoxin 8 are also reported. The synthesis of 7 and 8 was based upon the reduction of the γ-lactone ring of 4′-demethyl-4-epipodophyllotoxin followed by selective protection at C-11 and elongation at C-13. (8-15% and 4% overall yields). Compounds 4, 5 and 7 did not display relevant cytotoxicity in vitro against L1210 murine leukemia.     

C(1→4)-linked disaccharides through carbonylative Stille cross-coupling

A tinglucal tributyl[4,6-O-bis(t-butyl)silylidene-3-O-tris(isopropyl)silyl]tin 7 and a triflate derived from isolevoglucosenone (1R,4R,5R)-4-benzyloxy-6,8-dioxabicyclo[3.2.1]oct-2-en-2-yl trifluoromethanesulfonate 10 undergo the carbonylative Stille condensation under special conditions requiring AsPh₃, LiCl, and powdered charcoal as co-catalysts to give a cross-conjugated dienone 6 in which the bicyclic alkene moiety is more reactive than the glucal alkene moiety. This allows the regio- and stereoselective hydrogenation of the bicyclic alkene moiety giving an enone 21 that can be reduced stereoselectively to an allylic alcohol 22. Hydroboration of the glucal and bicyclic acetal opening generates a C(1→4) linked disaccharide 25 in which a protected form of β-d-glucopyranose is attached at position C(4) of a α-d-3-deoxy-ribo-hexopyranoside derivative via a (S)-hydroxymethano linker.     

Cytotoxic Podophyllotoxin Type-Lignans from the Steam Bark of <em>Bursera fagaroides </em>var. <em>fagaroides</em>

The hydroalcoholic extract of the steam bark of B. fagaroides var. fagaroides displayed potent cytotoxic activity against four cancer cell lines, namely KB (ED₅₀ = 9.6 × 10^-2 μg/mL), PC-3 (ED₅₀ = 2.5 × 10^-1 μg/mL), MCF-7 (ED₅₀ = 6.6 μg/mL), and HF-6 (ED₅₀ = 7.1 × 10^-3 μg/mL). This extract also showed anti-tumour activity when assayed on mice inoculated with L5178Y lymphoma cells. Bioactivity-directed isolation of this extract, afforded seven podophyllotoxin-type lignans identified as podophyllotoxin (1), β-peltatin-A-methylether (2), 5'-desmethoxy-β-peltatin-A-methylether (3), desmethoxy-yatein (4), desoxypodophyllotoxin (5), burseranin (6), and acetyl podophyllotoxin (7) by 1D and 2DNMR and FAB-MS analyses, and comparison with reported values. All the isolated compounds showed potent cytotoxic activity in the cell lines tested, especially compound 3, which exhibited greater activity than camptothecin and podophyllotoxin against PC-3 (ED₅₀ = 1.0 × 10^-5 μg/mL), and KB (ED₅₀ = 1.0 × 10^-5 μg/mL). This is the first report of the isolation of podophyllotoxin and its acetate in a Bursera species.     

Synthesis of seco-psymberin/irciniastatin A: the discovery of a novel PhI(OAc)2 mediated cascade cyclization reaction

The psymberin unsaturated ‘psymberate’ side chain 7 was synthesized in 7 steps (36% yield) with good diastereoselectivity using commercially available starting material to control the stereochemistry at C₄ and C₅. The synthesis of seco-psymberin was completed in an efficient manner based on a CuI mediated coupling reaction between vinyl iodide 8 and ‘psymberamide’ 7. In an attempt to synthesize natural psymberin from the seco-intermediate, a novel PhI(OAc)₂ mediated cascade ring closing reaction was discovered. A possible mechanistic pathway for the formation of the ring closing product was presented.     

A practical approach for the preparation of monofunctional azulenyl squaraine dye

The synthesis of monofunctional azulenyl squaraine dye NIRQ₇₀₀ is described. The essential azulene intermediate 3, 1-(methoxycarbonyl)-2-methylazulene, was achieved via [8+2] cycloaddition between lactone 2, 2H-3-methoxycarbonyl-cyclohepta[b]furan-2-one, and the in situ generated vinyl ethers under high temperature and pressure conditions. Methylation on the cycloheptatriene ring of 2-methyl azulene 6 via Meisenheimer-type intermediate following Schrott's method formed the carboxylic acid intermediate 9, 3-(2-methyl-azulen-4-yl)-propionic acid. Condensation of 9 with squaric acid provided the title compound NIRQ₇₀₀ at moderate yields. The non-fluorescent squaraine dye NIRQ₇₀₀ absorbed in a 600-700 nm range and potentially can be used to quench a number of available NIR fluorochromes in order to extend the spectrum of biological quenching assays.     

Kinetics and mechanism of some vinyl radical cyclisations

The vinyl radicals 2a, 2b, and 11 each undergo fast exo ring closure to give 5a, 5b, and 12, the first two of which readily rearrange to ring-expanded radicals.     

Formation of (vinyl-ferrocenyl)stibines involving β-elimination: Hypervalent Sb-N bonding

Unusual syntheses of vinyl substituted ferrocenylstibines viz. diphenyl(2-vinylferrocenyl) stibine (2) and iodo-(N,N-dimethylaminoethylferrocenyl)(2-vinylferrocenyl)stibine (4) involving β-elimination, are reported. Stibines Ph₂SbFc (1) or Fc₂SbCl (3) containing dimethylaminoethyl-pendant arm on a ferrocenyl ring on reaction with MeI gives vinyl substituted ferrocenylstibines. All the new stibines were characterized by IR, mass, ¹H, ¹³C, COSY, HETCOR NMR spectroscopy. The structures of all of these 1,2-disubstituted ferrocenylstibines were determined by X-ray diffraction analyses. The compounds 3 and 4 show hypervalent bonding between the antimony and nitrogen atoms giving 6 and 5 coordinated antimony, respectively. This is the first report on ferrocenylstibines containing a vinyl group in their framework.     

Controlled copolymerization of vinyl acetate with 1‐alkenes and their fluoro derivatives by degenerative transfer

The degenerative transfer copolymerization of vinyl acetate with ethene and higher 1‐alkenes, as well as their fluoro derivatives (R_fCH?CH₂), under mild conditions was carried out using AIBN as the initiator and ethyl iodoacetate as the control agent. The obtained random copolymers were fairly high in alkene content, with high molecular weights and relatively narrow polydispersities. The quasi‐living nature of the copolymerization allowed the synthesis of a block terpolymer by sequential addition of two different 1‐alkene comonomers to a vinyl acetate copolymerization system. The fluorinated side chains of vinyl acetate/fluoro alkene copolymers segregate toward the air‐side of thin films, resulting in advancing water contact angle as high as 114°. 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 3728–3736, 2005     

Construction of functionalized B/C/D ring system of C19-diterpenoid alkaloids via intramolecular Diels–Alder reaction followed by Wagner–Meerwein rearrangement

A concise strategy for construction of B/C/D ring system of C₁₉-diterpenoid alkaloids was described, which features a highly diastereoselective intramolecular Diels–Alder reaction of masked o-benzoquinone and an efficient Wagner–Meerwein 1,2-shift rearrangement. The functional group transformations of rearrangement product 19 demonstrate a potential for stereoselective installation of oxygen functions on D-ring of many type of C₁₉-diterpenoid alkaloids.     

A novel synthesis of β-lactone precursors of pyramidalized alkenes

β-Lactone precursors 11 and 12 of pyramidalized alkenes 3,n = 1and 2, have been synthesized by a two-step route involving transannular Paterno-Buchi reaction of methyleneketones 7 and 8, followed by RuO₄ oxidation of the resulting oxetanes 9 and 10. Evidence for the formation of alkene 3,n = 2, by pyrolysis of 12 is presented.     

Enzymatic desymmetrization of meso cis-2,6- and cis,cis-2,4,6-substituted piperidines. Chemoenzymatic synthesis of (5S,9S)-(+)-indolizidine 209D

The stereoselective acylation of meso piperidines 3a,b by vinyl acetate (solvent and acyl donor) in the presence of Candida antarctica lipase gave the corresponding (2S,6R) and (2S,4R,6R) monoesters 2a,b in high enantiomeric purity. (5S,9S)-(+)-Indolizidine 209D was prepared in eight steps from (2S,6R)-2a.     

Synthesis of all four enantiomers of 1-aminoindane-2-carboxylic acid,a new cispentacin benzologue

Racemic cis- and trans-1-aminoindane-2-carboxylic acids (3 and 5) were prepared from indene by chlorosulphonyl isocyanate addition followed by ring opening and isomerisation. The intermediate racemic hydroxymethylated β-lactam 6 was resolved through the lipase-catalysed asymmetric acylation of the primary hydroxy group at the (R)-stereogenic centre. High enantioselectivities (E>200) were observed when the enzymatic reactions were performed with lipase AK or lipase PS as catalyst and vinyl acetate or vinyl butyrate as acyl donor. The hydrolysis and isomerisation resulted in all four enantiomers (9, 11, 13 and 14) of 1-aminoindane-2-carboxylic acid, a new benzologue of cispentacin.     

Synthesis of 7H-indolo[2,3-c]quinolines: study of the Pd-catalyzed intramolecular arylation of 3-(2-bromophenylamino)quinolines under microwave irradiation

D-ring substituted 5-methyl-5H-indolo[2,3-c]quinolines (4) have been synthesized in three steps starting from commercially available 3-bromoquinoline (5) and 2-bromoanilines (6). The methodology consists of two consecutive palladium-catalyzed reactions: a selective Buchwald-Hartwig amination followed by a regioselective intramolecular Heck-type reaction. The latter step has been investigated under microwave irradiation. Heating at 180 °C allows to seriously reduce the catalyst loading and get a full conversion to reaction product in 10 min. In addition, the former simplifies the purification.     

Synthesis of (−)-okundoperoxide and determination of the absolute configuration of natural (+)-okundoperoxide

The first enantioselective synthesis of (3S,4aR,8aR)-1 (the enantiomer of natural okundoperoxide) has been accomplished. The synthesis features: 1) stereoselective installation of the peroxy functionality (16 → 17); 2) ring opening of peroxyacetal and subsequent intramolecular reaction between the hydroperoxide and the vinyl epoxide to form the peroxy six-membered ring (5 → 1). The absolute configuration of okundoperoxide was determined to be 3R,4aS,8aS by comparing specific rotations of the synthetic sample and the natural product.     

Alkene insertion reactions of nitrogen-coordinated acylpalladium(II) complexes. The crystal structure of the dicyclopentadiene insertion product [Pd(C10H12COMe)(bpy)]SO3CF3

The new acylpalladium(II) complex [PdI(COMe)(bpy)] (2b, bpy = 2,2′-bipyridyl) has been obtained by two routes; (i) by insertion of carbon monoxide into the PdC bond of [PdIMe(bpy)] (1b), and (ii) by ligand exchange from [PdI(COMe)(tmeda)] (2a, tmeda = N,N,N′,N′-tetramethylethanediamine). The cationic species obtained by reaction of 2a and 2b with AgOSO₂CF₃ both undergo alkene insertions into the PdC acyl bond that lead to remarkably stable products. The X-ray structure of the dicyclopentadiene insertion product [Pd(C₁₀H₁₂COMe)(bpy)]SO₃CF₃ (4b) shows the oxygen atom of the carbonyl group to be coordinated to the metal center (PdO = 2.026(3) Å).     

Study of the ferrocene-lithium cation interaction by DFT calculations: an in-depth analysis of the existence of a planetary system

Irigoras et al. found two isomers of the ferrocene-lithium cation complex by DFT calculations [Irigoras, A.; Mercero, J. M.; Silanes, I.; Ugalde, J. J. Am. Chem. Soc.2001, 123, 5040-5043]. The most stable isomer (I) of this complex has Li⁺ on top of one of the cyclopentadienyls, while in the least stable isomer (II) Li⁺ binds to the central iron metal. The latter isomer has been characterized as a planetary system in the sense that Li⁺ has one thermally accessible planar orbit around the central ferrocene moiety. Afterwards, Scheibitz et al. have provided experimental indication for the existence of structure II [Scheibitz, M.; Winter, R. F.; Bolte, M.; Lerner, H.-W.; Wagner, M. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed.2003, 42, 924-927]. However, their experimental proof is indirect, since it is only based on the synthesis of [3-Li]Li([12]crown-4)₂, a crystalline solid, which anion (structure A) has a lithium cation bound to the iron atoms. As these authors have indicated, the existence of structure A could not represent a conclusive proof, because the Li⁺ placement in this structure could be due to different effects to those of complex II (specifically, the electrostatic field originating from the two anionic dimethylborate bridges). To analyze this subject we have carried out a comprehensive DFT study of the ferrocene-Li⁺ interaction in this kind of compounds.     

Influence of chelate ring size on the properties of phosphine-sulfonate palladium catalysts

Phosphine-sulfonate based palladium is one of the most extensively studied catalyst systems in olefin polymerization.This type of catalyst features six-membered chelate ring size,and can enable the copolymerizations of ethylene with a wide variety of polar monomers.In this contribution,we decide to investigate the influence of chelate ring size on the properties of phosphinesulfonate palladium catalysts.As such,a series of phosphine-sulfonate ligands and the corresponding seven-membered ring Pd(II)complexes[κ~2-(P,O)-2-(CH_2-PR_1R_2)-4-methylphenyl-sulfonato]Pd(Me)(DMSO)(Pd1,R_1=R_2=Cy,Pd2,R_1=R_2=o-Me O-C_6H_4;Pd3,R_1=Ph,R_2=2-[2,6-(Me O)_2C_6H_3]C_6H_4;DMSO=dimethyl sulfoxide)were designed,prepared and characterized.These palladium complexes are moderately active when they were applied in ethylene polymerization and copolymerizations with methyl acrylate and butyl vinyl ether.However,their properties are greatly reduced from those of the classic six-membered ring phosphine-sulfonate palladium complex Pd2′.The experimental results indicate that the bigger chelate ring size can increase the ligand flexibility and damage the catalytic properties for the phosphine-sulfonate type palladium catalysts.     

Officinatrione: an unusual (17S)-17,18-seco-lupane skeleton,and four novel lupane-type triterpenoids from the roots of Taraxacum officinale

Novel 5 lupane-type of triterpenois, i.e., 3β-acetoxy-18α,19α-epoxylupan-21β-ol (1), 18α,19α-epoxy-21β-hydroxylupan-3-one (2), lup-18-ene-3,21-dione (3), lupa-18,21-dien-3β-yl acetate (4), and (17S)-17,18-seco-lup-19(21)-ene-3,18,22-trione (5), named officinatrione, as well as 16 known compounds from the roots of Taraxacum officinale collected in Takatsuki city, Osaka, Japan. Of the above compounds, 5 was the first lupane-type triterpene, of which the D-ring was open to form a nine-membered ring. Compounds 2 and 5 exhibited moderate cytotoxic activities against L1210 cell line (IC₅₀ 10.5 and 10.1 μM).