Enantioselective Synthesis of β-Necrodol and of 1-Epi-β-necrodol via Asymmetric 1,4-Addition and Magnesium-Ene Cyclization. Preliminary Communication

Enantiomerically pure β-necrodol ( 1 ) and its 1-epimer 16 have been synthesized starting from aldehyde 5 . The two key steps are an asymmetric conjugate addtion/Mannich reaction tandem ( 10 → 12 ) and a type-II-magnesiumene cyclization/oxidation sequence ( 14 → 1 + 16 ).     

Preparation of Enantiomerically Pure β-Silylcarboxyl Derivatives by Asymmetric 1,4-Addition to N-Enoyl-sultams. Preliminary Communication

EtAlCl₂-promoted additions of organocopper reagents to camphor-derived, conjugated N-enoyl-sultams gave saturated and olefinic β-silylcarboxyl derivatives with high diastereodifferentiation. Nondestructive removal of the chiral auxiliary followed by oxidative Si-C bond cleavage furnished enantiomerically pure acetate-derived aldols and propionate-derived ‘anti’ -aldols (via silyl-directed α-methylation).     

Enantioselective Copper-Catalyzed 1,4-Addition of Grignard Reagents to α,β-Unsaturated Carbonyl Compounds

The enantioselective copper-catalyzed 1,4-addition of Grignard reagents to α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds was studied with the following Cu^I compounds as catalyst precursor and 1,2:5,6-di-O-isopropylidene-3-thio-α-D -glucofuranose (Hsiig) as chiral ligand: CuI, iodo[bis(dibutylsulfide)]copper(I), [Cu(siig)], [Cu(siig)(pp)] (pp =1,2-bis)(diphenylphosphinoethene), and tetrakis[iodo(tributylphosphine)]copper(I). The addition of BuMg halides to cyclohex-2-en-1-one was tested under several reaction conditions. The chemical yields and regioselectivities for this reaction were, in all cases, larger than 90 and 98%, respectively, and independent of the experimental conditions. The enantioselectivity was strongly dependent on the reaction conditions and reached a maximum of 60%. Several other substrates were also tested in the above reaction. The X-ray crystal structure for [Cu(siig)(pp)] was determined by X-ray crystallography.     

Asymmetric Induction on Copper(I) Chloride catalyzed 1,4-addition of alkylmagnesium chlorides to α, β-disubstituted (E)-enoylsultams and subsequent protonation

Successive treatment of conjugated N-enoylsultams 2 with alkyl Grignard reagents/CuCl and aq. NH₄Cl solution generated selectively two stereogenic centers at C(α) and C(β) providing, after flash chromatography and crystallization, acylsultams 5 in high purity. Mild cleavage afforded the recovered sultam auxiliary 1 and enantiomerically pure carboxylic acids 7 .     

Synthesis of (1α)‐1,25‐Dihydroxyvitamin D3 with a β‐Positioned Seven‐Carbon Side Chain at C(12)

A convergent synthesis of an analogue of (1α)‐1,25‐dihydroxyvitamin D₃ ( 1b ) with a C₇ side chain at C(12), i.e., of 5 (Fig.), is described. A key step of the synthesis is the assembly of the triene system by a Pd^II‐catalyzed ring closure of an enol triflate (‘bottom’ fragment) followed by coupling of the resulting Pd^II intermediate with an alkenylboronate (‘upper’ fragment) (Scheme 2). The synthetic strategy allows isotopic labelling at the end of the synthesis.     

Tordanone,un stéroïde replié avec une jonction de cycle A/B β-cis (5β) et B/C α-cis(8α)

Tordanone, a Twice Bent Steroid Structure with Ring A/B β-cis(5β)- and Ring B/C α-cis(8α)-Fused The 3β, 14α, 25-trihydroxy-5β, 8α-cholestan-6-one ( = tordanone; 4 ) has been prepared by stereospecific hydrogenation of 3β, 14α, 25-trihydroxy-5β-cholesta-7,22ξ-dien-6-one ( 5 ). This is the first stereospecific synthesis of a B/C cis-fused steroid belonging to the 5β, 8α -cholestane group with a H-atom at positions 5β (A/B cis-fused) and 8α. The resulting twice bent structure shows a particularly strong steric hindrance of the β-face where CH₃(18) at the C/D ring junction and H_β? C(7) of the B ring are very close to each other. Structural features and mechanistic aspects of the hydrogenation are discussed.     

Asymmetric Dihydroxylations of β-Substituted N-(α,β-Enoyl)bornane-10,2-sultams

Pure (E)- or (Z)-enoylsultams 2 were Oxidized with OsO₄/N-Methylmorpholine N-oxide in a stereospecific and highly π-face-selective manner. Acetalization of the resulting 1,2-diols furnished, after purification, the stable, crystalline acetals 6 in >99% d.e. and in 63–74% overall yield from 2 . Reductive or hydrolytic cleavage of 6 gave enantiomerically pure alcohols 8 or carboxylic acids 9 with recovery of the sultan auxiliary 1 .     

Syntheses of (±)-17α- and (±)-17β-hydroxytacamonine; determination of configuration at C-17

Both (±)-17α-hydroxytacamonine (3) and its 17β-isomer (4) were synthesized in two steps (one-pot) from aldehyde mixture 5/6 via the cyanohydrin reaction. NMR spectral characterization of isomer 3 revealed it to be unidentical with natural 17-hydroxytacamonine, whereas spectral data of isomer 4 were in agreement with those published for the natural isomer. The configuration at C-17 was confirmed by NOE difference spectroscopy.     

(—)β-Lycorane

Hydrogenation of diacetyllycorine (Ib) was found to be the most effective route for conversion of lycorine (Ia) into β-dihydrocaranine (II). The Hauptmann reduction of 1-deoxy-β-dihydrolycorin-2-one (XII) or the Clemmensen reduction of 1-0-acetyl-β-dihydrolycorinone (XI) followed by hydrogenation afforded (—)β-lycorane (X), which, in view of the sequence of reactions used in these transformations, is considered to have the same configurational structure as the skeleton of β-dihydrocaranine. This lycorane was also obtained by the Hauptmann reduction of β-dihydrocaranone (VIII). A procedure for preparing (—)-lycorane (V) from 1-0-acetyllycorin-2-one (XIV) was also worked up.     

Three polymorphs (α, β, and δ) of d‐mannitol at 100 K

In the monoclinic δ polymorph of d ‐mannitol, C₆H₁₄O₆, both the mol­ecule and the packing have approximate twofold rotational symmetry. The P2₁ structure thus approximates space group C222₁, and the α′ polymorph, previously reported in that space group, is almost certainly identical to the δ polymorph. However, torsion angles along the main backbone of the mol­ecule deviate from twofold symmetry by as much as 7.4 (3)° and the hydrogen‐bonding pattern does not conform to the higher symmetry. The α polymorph reported here is identical to the previously reported κ polymorph, and the low‐temperature structure of the β polymorph agrees well with previously reported room‐temperature determinations. The range of C—O bond lengths over the three polymorphs is 1.428 (2)–1.437 (4) Å, and the range of C—C distances is 1.515 (4)–1.5406 (19) Å. The δ polymorph has the highest density of the three, both at room temperature and at 100 K.     

Gold(I) as an Artificial Cyclase: Short Stereodivergent Syntheses of (−)‐Epiglobulol and (−)‐4β,7α‐ and (−)‐4α,7α‐Aromadendranediols

Three natural aromadendrane sesquiterpenes, (?)‐epiglobulol, (?)‐4β,7α‐aromadendranediol, and (?)‐4α,7α‐aromadendranediol, have been synthesized in only seven steps in 12, 15, and 17 % overall yields, respectively, from (E,E)‐farnesol by a stereodivergent gold(I)‐catalyzed cascade reaction which forms the tricyclic aromadendrane core in a single step. These are the shortest total syntheses of these natural compounds.