Kiliani on ketoses: branched carbohydrate building blocks from d-fructose and l-sorbose

Protected branched sugar lactones are available via Kiliani-acetonation sequences on readily available ketoses such as d-fructose and l-sorbose. In both cases, the readily crystallized diacetonides have a 2,3-cis-diol relationship in the product lactone. An efficient double inversion of the configuration at C-4 and C-5 of the product from d-fructose gives access to the formal Kiliani product from l-psicose. Branched carbohydrate lactones are likely to be of significant value as chirons for homochiral targets with functionalized quaternary centres.     

An efficient synthesis of l-allono-1,4-lactone from 2,3:5,6-di-O-isopropylidene-d-mannono-1,4-lactone

We reported herein an efficient synthesis of l-allono-1,4-lactone from 2,3:5,6-di-O-isopropylidene-d-mannono-1,4-lactone in five steps. The key feature of this method involved a one-pot, ‘double inversion’ procedure at the stereocenters of C-4 and C-5 of d-mannono-1,4-lactone to afford the target molecule.     

Stereoselectivity of 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions of l-valine-derived nitrones with methyl acrylate

Chiral nitrones derived from l-valine react with methyl acrylate to afford the corresponding diastereomeric 3,5-disubstituted isoxazolidines. The dibenzylsubstituted nitrone gave also 3,4-disubstituted isoxazolidine in 4% yield, additionally. The stereoselectivity was dependent on the steric hindrance of the nitrone and reaction conditions. High pressure decreased the reaction time of the cycloadditions. The major products were found to have the C-3/C-6 erythro and C-3/C-5 trans relative configuration. The major cycloadduct undergoes N-O cleavage and deprotection to a chiral diaminodiol derivative.     

Synthesis of homochiral 2-C-perfluoroalkyl substituted d- and l-riboses

Homochiral 2-C-perfluoroalkyl substituted d- and l-riboses were synthesized via Barbier, Grignard and Ruppert type reactions. The influence of the size of the perfluoroalkyl groups, attached to C-2, on the furanose/pyranose as well as on the α-furanose/β-furanose and α-pyranose/β-pyranose ratio in solution was studied.     

Synthesis of l,l-puromycin

l,l-Puromycin, a diastereomer of the natural peptidyl nucleoside antibiotic puromycin, has been synthesized from l-xylose in 13 steps.     

A concise synthesis of 2,5-dideoxy-2,5-imino-d-mannitol (DMDP) and HomoDMDP from l-xylose

A short and practical procedure for the preparation of C-2 substituted polyhydroxypyrrolidines is described. The C-2 substituent is introduced by a stereoselective addition of a Grignard reagent to a 2,3,5-protected aldofuranose and the cyclization to the pyrrolidine ring system is performed through a bis-mesylation/double nucleophilic displacement sequence. The efficiency of the methodology was demonstrated by its application to the synthesis of HomoDMDP and DMDP.     

Synthesis and ligation ability of mono-aminooxy-functionalized dendrigraft poly-l-lysine (DGL)

A bifunctional tetraethylene glycol (TEG) linker was prepared and used as an initiator for the synthesis of the first two generations of dendrigraft poly-l-lysines (DGL). The key steps involved the desymmetrization of TEG by introduction of an amine group after activation of a terminal hydroxyl group and of a conveniently protected aminooxy functionality at the other end. Initiation of l-lysine N-carboxyanhydride polymerization by the terminal amine yielded generations 1 and 2 of DGL in which a subsequent functionalization of the aminooxy group by ligation with entities bearing an aldehyde group turned out to be feasible.     

Racemization behavior of l,l-lactide during heating

To control the depolymerization process of poly(l-lactic acid) into l,l-lactide for feedstock recycling, the racemization of l,l-lactide as a post-depolymerization reaction was investigated. In the absence of a catalyst, the conversion to meso-lactide increased with increase in the heating temperature and time at a higher rate than the conversion into oligomers. The resulting high composition of meso-lactide suggests that the direct racemization of l,l-lactide had occurred in addition to the known racemization mechanism that occurs on the oligomer chains. In the presence of MgO, the oligomerization rapidly proceeded to reach an equilibrium state between monomers and oligomers. The equilibrium among l,l-, meso-, and d,d-lactides was found to be a convergent composition ratio l,l-:meso-:d,d-lactides = 1:1.22:0.99 (wt/wt/wt) after 120 min at 300 °C. This composition ratio also indicates that in addition to the known racemization reaction on the oligomer chains, direct racemization among the lactides is also a frequent occurrence.     

Synthesis of l-aminohomohistidine (l-Ahh)

A short synthesis of l-aminohomohistidine (l-Ahh), which starts from readily available δ-hydroxy-l-lysine is described. The embedding of the basic guanidino moiety in the aromatic imidazole lowers the basicity of the side chain to a pK_a of 8.3. It is proposed that l-Ahh may be employed as an arginine-mimetic in medicinal chemistry.     

Intermolecular/interionic interactions in l-isoleucine-, l-proline-, and l-glutamine-aqueous electrolyte systems

Speed of sound and density values for ternary systems (amino acid + salt + water): l-isoleucine/l-proline/l-glutamine in aqueous solutions of 1.5 M KCl, 1 M KNO₃, and 0.5 M K₂SO₄ have been measured for several concentrations of amino acids at different temperatures (303.15, 308.15, 313.15, 318.15, and 323.15 K). Using speed of sound and density data, the thermodynamic parameters such as isentropic compressibility (κ_s), change in isentropic compressibility (Δκ_s) and relative change (Δκ_s/κ₀) in isentropic compressibility have been computed. The isentropic compressibility values decrease with increase in the amino acid concentration as well as with temperature. The decrease in κ_s values with increase in concentration of l-isoleucine/l-proline/l-glutamine in 1.5 M KCl, 1 M KNO₃, and 0.5 M K₂SO₄ has been ascribed to an increase in the number of incompressible zwitterions in solutions, and the formation of ‘zwitterions-ions’ and ‘zwitterions-water dipole’ entities in solutions. The decrease in κ_s values with increase in temperature has been attributed to the corresponding decrease of κ_relax (a relaxational part of compressibility), which is dominant over the corresponding increase of κ_∞ (an instantaneous part of compressibility). The trends of variation of Δκ_s and Δκ_s/κ₀ with variations in solute concentration and temperature have also been discussed in terms of solute-solute and solute-solvent intermolecular/interionic interactions operative in the systems.     

Enzymatic determination of l-lysine by flow-injection techniques

An enzymatic assay that is highly selective for l-lysine, based on flow-injection techniques combined with spectrophotometric detection, is presented. l-Lysine-α-oxidase (E.C. 1.4.3.14) from Trichoderma viride and horseradish peroxidase were used in a coupled enzyme assay. Peroxide produced in the first reaction was converted by peroxidase with phenol and 4-aminoantipyrine to a quinoneimine dye detectable at 500 nm. An analytical enzyme reactor filled with coimmobilized enzymes was incorporated in the flow-injection system. The assay has a measuring frequency of 30 samples h^?1 and a response time of less than 2 min. To adapt the assay to high concentrations of l-Lysine and to minimize interferences, the injected sample volume was reduced to 2 μ-l, resulting in a linearity range of 1–16 mM l-lysine with a sensitivity of 6–7 mV 1 mmol^?1, a limit of detection (3σ) of 1 mM and a reproducibility of 0.5% (repetitive injection of a 10 mM l-lysine sample). The enzyme cartridge is stable for several months and thousands of measurements.     

Synthesis of proline-modified analogues of the neuroprotective agent glycyl-l-prolyl-glutamic acid (GPE)

The synthesis of ten proline-modified analogues of the neuroprotective tripeptide GPE is described. Five of the analogues incorporate a proline residue with a hydrophobic group at C-2 and two further analogues have this side chain locked into a spirolactam ring system. The pyrrolidine ring was also modified by replacing the γ-CH₂ group with sulfur and/or incorporation of two methyl groups at C-5.     

Synthesis of 1-deoxy-l-gulonojirimycin and 1-deoxy-l-talonojirimycin

De novo synthesis of noncompetitive glycosidase inhibitors l-gulo-DNJ and l-talo-DNJ has been achieved in 9-10 steps starting from Garner’s aldehyde. Key to the success of this procedure was the construction of the 2,3-unsaturated piperidine 14, which syn dihydroxylation under Kishi’s and Donohoe’s conditions led to the desired iminosugars.     

Practical synthesis of d-[1-C]mannose, l-[1-C] and l-[6-C]fucose

The chemical synthesis of ¹³C-labeled mannose and fucose is important for the preparation of molecular probes used in the conformational study of the oligosaccharide portions of glycoproteins. A new method for the synthesis of the title [1-¹³C]-labeled compounds via the corresponding olefin compounds, which are in turn derived from d-mannitol or l-arabinose by efficient introduction of ¹³C, by the Wittig reaction using Ph₃P¹³CH₃I and n-BuLi, is described. The introduction of ¹³CH₃I to produce the [1-¹³C]- and [6-¹³C]-labeled compounds was accomplished in 62%, 56%, and 71% yields, respectively. All mannose and fucose protons, from H-1 to H-6, were observed by the HMQC-TOCSY technique using 1:1 mixtures of [1-¹³C]- and [6-¹³C]-labeled compounds.     

Vibrational spectra of l-lysine monohydrochloride dihydrate and its two anhydrous forms

ATR FTIR and Raman spectra of l-Lys·HCl·2H₂O and two crystalline forms of anhydrous l-Lys·HCl are reported and discussed. Distinction with earlier published IR spectra of l-Lys·HCl·2H₂O registered by the KBr pellet method is explained by distortion of the spectra because of possible ionic exchange and partial decomposition.     

Molecular recognition of l-leucyl-l-alanine: enantioselective inclusion of alkyl methyl sulfoxides

A simple aliphatic dipeptide, l-leucyl-l-alanine (Leu-Ala), includes several alkyl methyl sulfoxides enantioselectively to form inclusion crystals. From single-crystal X-ray analyses of three inclusion compounds of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), isobutyl methyl sulfoxide, and benzyl methyl sulfoxide, it was elucidated that Leu-Ala molecules self-assemble to form layer structures and the sulfoxides are included via hydrogen bonding in a cavity between these layers. The inclusion cavity has methyl group and isobutyl group at its each side, and the guest sulfoxide is placed in such a manner that its methyl group faces toward the methyl of the Leu-Ala cavity. When the alkyl group of the sulfoxide is comparably large, it is located in the residual space of the cavity to attain effective crystal packing. Thus, the sulfoxides having a comparably large group such as isobutyl, butyl, and benzyl are included with a high (R)-enantioselectivity in Leu-Ala crystals.     

An efficient synthesis of d-ribo- and l-lyxo-phytosphingosine from d-tartaric acid

The preparations of d-ribo- and l-lyxo-phytosphingosines (1, 2) are described. Chelation-controlled addition of tetradecylmagnesium bromide to pentylidene-protected d-threitol aldehyde 6 afforded the key intermediate tetrol 7, providing the desired l-lyxo stereochemistry of phytosphingosine. Inversion at C4 of intermediate 7 provided the d-ribo stereochemistry.     

From d-xylose to a d-glycero-l-altrose derivative

A key intermediate corresponding to a rare sugar framework has been synthesized, starting from d-xylose, an inexpensive carbohydrate. This approach gave access to new elaborated sugar moieties for structure–activity relationships in the KRN research.     

Concise and divergent approach to 3-O-acyl-l-noviose derivatives and their 3-amino bioisosteres: 3-O-benzoyl-l-noviose and N-benzoyl-3-amino-l-noviose

Generally applicable concise approaches to 3-O-acyl-l-noviose derivatives and their 3-amino bioisosteres, represented by 5 and 6, were described. Chiral aldehyde 7 was thus prepared from dimethyl l-tartrate in five steps, and converted into 5 and 6 by employing substrate induced asymmetric aldehyde or N-sulfinyl aldimine allylation and dihydropyrane epoxidation as key steps, respectively.     

Synthesis of a fluoroalkene peptidomimetic precursor of N-acetyl-l-glutamyl-l-alanine

Fluoroolefin peptidomimetics of the dipeptide N-acetyl-Glu-Ala were synthesized via an Evans asymmetric aldol reaction and an Overman rearrangement. This dipeptide is the N-terminal of an octapeptide implicated in the signal transduction via PKCε.