A short and concise asymmetric synthesis of hamigeran B

The interesting biological properties of the hamigerans wherein hamigeran B is a potent antiviral agent with low cytotoxicity to host cells make these deceptively simple looking structures challenging synthetic targets. A strategy to hamigeran B evolved wherein the three contiguous stereocenters are established ultimately from a Pd catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation (AAA). The latter involves an asymmetric allylation of a non-stabilized ketone enolate in 77 % yield and 93 % ee. By using this process, (S)-5-allyl-2-isopropyl-5-methyl-1-trifluoromethanesulfonyloxycyclopentene becomes available in four steps from 2-methylcyclopentanone. Introduction of the aryl unit by cross-coupling proceeded intermolecularly but failed intramolecularly. On the other hand, reductive removal of the triflate permitted a Heck reaction to effect intramolecular introduction of the aryl ring. The unusual conformational properties of this molecular architecture are revealed by the regioselectivity of the beta-hydrogen elimination in the Heck reaction and the diastereoselectivity of the reduction establishing the stereochemistry of the carbon bearing the isopropyl group. The successful route consists of 15 steps from 2-methylcyclopentanone and dimethylorcinol illustrating the efficiency of the route based upon the Pd AAA.     

Synthesis of (+/-)-hamigeran B, (-)-hamigeran B, and (+/-)-1-epi-hamigeran B: use of bulky silyl groups to protect a benzylic carbon-oxygen bond from hydrogenolysis

Enone 42 was converted into diene 56, which was then subjected to hydrogenation. Use of the tert-butyldimethylsiloxy groups enforces facial selectivity and protects the C(5) oxygen from hydrogenolysis. The resulting product (55) is easily converted into hamigeran B (1), a marine natural product with powerful activity against herpes and polio viruses. Optically pure enone 73 was made by use of a Meyers' auxiliary and converted into (-)-hamigeran B with the natural absolute configuration.     

A catalytic, asymmetric formal synthesis of (+)-hamigeran B

A concise asymmetric, formal synthesis of (+)-hamigeran B is reported. A Pd-catalyzed, decarboxylative allylic alkylation, employing a trifluoromethylated derivative of t-BuPHOX, is utilized as the enantioselective step to form the critical quaternary carbon center in excellent yield and enantioselectivity. The product is converted in three steps to a late-stage intermediate previously used in the synthesis of hamigeran B.     

Reversal of facial selectivity in complex Diels-Alder reactions

A complex Diels-Alder reaction between a semi-cyclic diene with allylic silyloxy substituents and a bromo enone presented an unusual diastereoselectivity: attack of the diene occured on its more hindered face, and this reversal of selectivity was shown to be induced by the presence of a bromo substituent in the dienophile.     

Scope and limitations of the catalytic asymmetric rearrangement of epoxides to allylic alcohols using chiral lithium amide bases/lithiated imidazoles

The catalytic asymmetric rearrangement of functionalised cyclohexene and cyclopentene oxides has been studied using sub-stoichiometric amounts of a chiral lithium amide in combination with a stoichiometric amount of three different lithiated imidazoles. 1-Methylimidazole that had been lithiated at the C-2 aryl position gave the highest enantioselectivity (82% ee). With 1,2-dimethylimidazole that had been lithiated at the C-2 methyl group, epoxide ring opening occurred as an unexpected and competing process. Ultimately, ring opening was suppressed using a more sterically hindered imidazole. In all catalytic examples, a racemic background reaction (presumably due to rearrangement by the lithiated imidazoles) was observed.     

An experimental and computational study of 1,2-hydrogen migrations in 2-hydroxycyclopentylidene and its conjugate base

Thermal decomposition of alpha-hydroxydiazirine 2 gives primarily cyclopentanone and some allylic alcohol, in similar amounts as the known cyclohexyl analogue 1. Calculations (B3LYP/6-31+G) also show cyclopentanone to be the major product of this carbene rearrangement. Diazirine 2 and the lithium salt of the corresponding conjugate base 3 were decomposed by photolysis. The proportion of ketone formed increases with deprotonation, a trend also found computationally. In comparison, the base-induced isomerization of cyclopentene oxide, which proceeds via alpha-elimination to a carbenoid intermediate similar to that obtained from 3, yields primarily allylic alcohol rather than ketone; neither ring size nor charge thus accounts for the unusual product distribution observed. Interestingly, the calculations reveal that in the gas phase with no counterion, the singlet, oxyanionic carbene, and the alpha-deprotonated epoxide are the same, rather than discrete structures. This intramolecular complexation stablilizes the oxyanionic carbene by 20-25 kcal/mol.     

Novel nitrogen ligands based on imidazole derivatives and their application in asymmetric catalysis

Recently prepared chiral amines have been used in the preparation of novel tridentate ligands based on an imidazole ring with an additional (hetero)ring. The synthesis was carried out by the reaction of chiral amines with suitable aldehydes (2-phenylimidazole-4-carbaldehyde, 2-hydroxybenzaldehyde or pyridine-2-carbaldehyde) under reductive conditions (H₂/Pd or NaBH₄). All ligands prepared showed strong hydrogen bonds in d₆-DMSO solution, which resulted in hindered imidazole tautomerism. The observed hindered tautomerism was studied by ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The structures of the prepared ligands were also confirmed by APCI mass spectroscopy. Both chiral amines and tridentate compounds have been applied as ligands in copper (II)-catalyzed nitroaldol reactions (Henry reaction). Various reaction conditions for the Henry reaction have been studied (influence of temperature, molar ratio, solvent or copper (II) precursors). The compounds prepared with the two imidazole rings showed fast reaction times and a reversal in enantioselectivity compared to other chiral amines.     

Total Synthesis of the Hamigerans

The first total synthesis of hamigerans D, G, L, and N–Q has been accomplished. A convergent approach was used to build the basic tricarbocyclic ring system bearing a 5‐6‐6 structure. A sequence of oxidative cleavage, homologation, and ring regeneration provided access to the 5‐7‐6 skeleton of hamigeran G. Based on the biogenetic hypothesis, elegant and highly efficient biomimetic transformations of hamigeran G into hamigerans D, N–Q, and L were achieved.     

Determination of organophosphorus pesticides in honeybees after solid-phase microextraction

The solvation parameter model has been applied to the characterization of micellar electrokinetic chromatographic (MEKC) systems with mixtures of lithium dodecyl sulfate and lithium perfluorooctanesulfonate as surfactant. The variation in MEKC surfactant composition results in changes in the coefficients of the correlation equation, which in turns leads to information on solute-solvent and solute-micelle interactions. Lithium perfluorooctanesulfonate is more dipolar and hydrogen bond acidic but less polarizable and hydrogen bond basic than lithium dodecyl sulfate. Therefore mixtures of lithium dodecyl sulfate and lithium perfluorooctanesulfonate cover a very wide range of polarity and hydrogen bond properties, which in turn results in important selectivity changes for analytes with different solute properties.     

Total synthesis of hamigerans and analogues thereof. Photochemical generation and Diels-Alder trapping of hydroxy-o-quinodimethanes

A number of naturally occurring substances, including hamigerans, contain ring systems which are fused to an aromatic nucleus. A general and streamlined method for the construction of such benzannulated bi- and polycyclic carbon frameworks has been developed, and its scope and limitations were explored. On the basis of the photoenolization of substituted benzaldehydes and subsequent Diels-Alder (PEDA) trapping of the generated hydroxy-o-quinodimethanes, this method was optimized to set the stage for the total synthesis of several naturally occurring members of the hamigeran class. Specifically, the developed synthetic technology served as the centerpiece process for the successful asymmetric synthesis of hamigerans A (2), B (3), and E (7). In addition to the PEDA reactions, several other novel reaction processes are described, including a high-yielding decarbonylative ring contraction and an oxidative decarboxylation of a hydroxyl beta-keto ester to afford an alpha-diketone. A number of analogues of these biologically active natural products were also prepared by application of the developed technology.     

Substituent effect in hydrogenative ring-opening of cyclobutanes on Pt/SiO2

The main direction of hydrogenative ring-opening of propylcyclobutane on Pt/SiO₂ catalyst in the temperature interval of 373–673 K is the formation of n-heptane through cleavage of the sterically hindered C₁–C₂ bond. The unusual selectivity can be attributed to adsorption of both the ring and the propyl group on the catalyst. With increasing temperature, the selectivity of ring-opening approaches the statistically expected ratio.     

Preparation of d,l-Phenylalanine by Amidocarbonylation of Benzyl Chloride

The preparation of d,l-phenylalanine via amidocarbonylation of benzyl chloride with acetamide and CO/H(2) is described. The rate of the reaction is dependent upon the CO pressure below 250 bar, but independent of the hydrogen pressure. A reaction temperature of 100 degrees C gives optimum yields. A relatively large amount of the catalyst, Co(2)(CO)(8), is needed for complete conversion because of inhibition caused by hydrogen chloride which is formed during the reaction. Addition of NaHCO(3) removes HCl as insoluble NaCl, resulting in improved conversion and selectivity of the reaction. It also allows the use of a stoichiometric amount of acetamide, whereas a 2- to 3-fold excess of acetamide is needed for complete conversion of benzyl chloride without NaHCO(3). Amidocarbonylation of benzyl alcohol gave d,l-phenylalanine in only 8% yield.     

Nondynamic kinetic resolution of configurationally stable biaryl lactones by reduction with oxazaborolidine-activated borane: AM1 studies and experimental verification

The complete mechanistic course of the atroposelective ring opening of a lactone-bridged biaryl, dinaphth[2,1-c:1',2'-e]oxepin-3-(5H)-one (3), with a chiral oxazaborolidine-BH3 complex was calculated using the semiempirical AM1 method. The first hydride transfer to the activated carbonyl function of the adduct complexes was elaborated to be the selectivity-determining step in the postulated five-step mechanism. The calculated enantioselectivity is in good accordance with the experimental results, so that related calculations were performed on the atroposelective ring opening of a sterically strongly hindered and therefore also configurationally stable six-membered biaryl lactone, 1,3-di-tert-butyl-6H-benzo[b]naphtho[1,2-d]pyran-6-one (6f). These calculations predicted a highly (M)-selective reduction of 6f (kM/kP = 358 at -78 degrees C), which, after the smooth preparation of 6f by intramolecular biaryl coupling in high yields, was fully confirmed experimentally (kM/kP > 200 at -78 degrees C). Isolation of the intermediate hydroxy aldehyde (M)-14 at the beginning of the reaction with the same enantiomeric excess as found for the corresponding alcohol (M)-7f conclusively showed the first hydride transfer step to determine the selectivity of this process. The good agreement of computationally predicted and experimentally confirmed values proves the suitability of the AM1 method for mechanistic studies on even such complex reactions and opens a most efficient overall synthesis of sterically highly hindered biaryls, in excellent chemical (for the ring closure) and optical (for the ring cleavage) yields and for any desired axial configuration.     

1,1‐Di(9‐fluorenyl)­ethanol,a ­by‐­product from the acetyl­ation of 9‐fluorenyl­lithium

Treatment of 9‐fluorenyl­lithium with acetyl chloride produces 9‐acetyl­fluorene, (I), and several by‐products. Among them is a compound unequivocally identified for the first time as the addition product of (I) with 9‐fluorenyl­lithium, 1,1‐di(9‐fluorenyl)­ethanol, C₂₈H₂₂O, (II). The two fluorene‐ring planes of (II) are essentially perpendicular [89.90 (9)°]. A number of intermolecular non‐bonding distances are well within or close to the sum of their respective van der Waals radii and may be responsible for the rarely observed large bowing of one of the fluorene rings. This bowing apparently arises from two mol­ecules impinging on the convex face of the bowed ring, augmented by hydrogen bonding between the peripheral π electrons of the concave face and the hydroxyl H atom of another mol­ecule adjacent to that face.     

Computational prediction of alpha/beta selectivities in the pyrolysis of oxygen-substituted phenethyl phenyl ethers

Phenethyl phenyl ether (PPE; PhCH 2CH 2OPh) is the simplest model for the most common beta-O-4 linkage in lignin. Previously, we developed a computational scheme to calculate the alpha/beta product selectivity in the pyrolysis of PPE by systematically exploiting error cancellation in the computation of relative rate constants. The alpha/beta selectivity is defined as the selectivity between the competitive hydrogen abstraction reaction paths on the alpha- and beta-carbons of PPE. We use density functional theory and employ transition state theory where we include diagonal anharmonic correction in the vibrational partition functions for low frequency modes for which a semiclassical expression is used. In this work we investigate the effect of oxygen substituents (hydroxy, methoxy) in the para position on the phenethyl ring of PPE on the alpha/beta selectivities. The total alpha/beta selectivity increases when substituents are introduced and is larger for the methoxy than the hydroxy substituent. The strongest effect of the substituents is observed for the alpha-pathway of the hydrogen abstraction by the phenoxyl chain carrying radical for which the rate increases. For the beta pathway and the abstraction by the R-benzyl radical (R = OH,OCH 3) the rate decreases with the introduction of the substituents. These findings are compared with results from recent experimental studies.     

阳离子－π体系相互作用的理论研究 3: 碱金属阳离子－苯 复合物体系的量子 化学研究

运用abinitioHartree-Fock从头算,微扰MP2和密度泛函B3LYP方法在不同的基组水平上对碱金属阳离子－苯复合物体系的可能构型进行了自由优化,得到了复合物的能量最低构型为碱金属阳离子位于苯环平面的正上方,频率计算结果表明该结构为稳定结构.复合物的键长、原子净电荷、分子轨道、前沿轨道能量、Mullicken键级等都表明,碱金属阳离子和苯环碳原子之间的作用包含p-π作用方式,碱金属阳离子与苯结合时电子从苯环向碱金属阳离子转移,形成电荷转移复合物.它们之间的结合方式和氢键的结合方式相似,但计算得到的热力学参数表明复合物中碱金属阳离子与苯之间的结合强度远远大于典型的氢键,尤其是锂离子－苯复合物的生成焓已和普通的化学键相当.复合物的红外特征振动频率位于200^-^1附近,对应于碱金属阳离子垂直于苯环平面的来回振动,同时形成复合物后,原来位于3200cm^-^1的苯的C--H振动红外活性消失。     

A computational study of the enantioselective addition of n-BuLi to benzaldehyde in the presence of a chiral lithium N,P amide

In the presence of a chiral lithium N,P amide, alkylation of benzaldehyde results in an enantioselective formation of 1-phenyl-pentanol. This stereoselective addition reaction has herein been studied using dispersion-corrected density functional theory. For five different chiral ligands originating from amino acids the resulting enantioselectivity has been computationally determined and compared with experimentally available enantiomeric ratios (e.r.). In all cases the experimentally preferred enantiomer could be reproduced by the computational model. The selectivity trend among the ligands was found strongly sensitive to the amount of dispersion correction included. The origin of selectivity in the alkylation reaction is found to be composed of many combined interactions. For the most selective ligand 2A the most important factors found, which are favouring the (R)-TS, are a CH-π interaction between benzaldehyde-dimethyl ether (DME), stronger Li-solvation, and Li-π interactions with the phenyl ring in the backbone of the chiral lithium N,P amide. In addition, solvation by the bulk solvent and the size of the substituent on the nitrogen are also found important factors for the enantioselectivity.     

Modified lithium borohydrides for reversible hydrogen storage (2)

This paper reports the results of the effort to destabilize lithium borohydride for reversible hydrogen storage. Various metals, metal hydrides, and metal chlorides were selected and evaluated as destabilization agents for reducing dehydriding temperatures and improving dehydriding/rehydriding reversibility. The most effective material was LiBH4 + 0.2MgCl2 + 0.1TiCl3 which starts desorbing 5 wt % of hydrogen at 60 degrees C and can be rehydrogenated to 4.5 wt % at 600 degrees C and 70 bar. X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopic analysis show the interaction of LiBH4 with additives and the unusual change of B-H stretching.     

Palladium(II)‐Catalyzed Allylic C?H Oxidation of Hindered Substrates Featuring Tunable Selectivity Over Extent of Oxidation

The use of Oxone and a palladium(II) catalyst enables the efficient allylic C H oxidation of sterically hindered α‐quaternary lactams which are unreactive under known conditions for similar transformations. This simple, safe, and effective system for C H activation allows for unusual tunable selectivity between a two‐electron oxidation to the allylic acetates and a four‐electron oxidation to the corresponding enals, with the dominant product depending on the presence or absence of water. The versatile synthetic utility of both the allylic acetate and enal products accessible through this methodology is also demonstrated.     

Palladium(II)‐Catalyzed Allylic CH Oxidation of Hindered Substrates Featuring Tunable Selectivity Over Extent of Oxidation

The use of Oxone and a palladium(II) catalyst enables the efficient allylic C? H oxidation of sterically hindered α‐quaternary lactams which are unreactive under known conditions for similar transformations. This simple, safe, and effective system for C? H activation allows for unusual tunable selectivity between a two‐electron oxidation to the allylic acetates and a four‐electron oxidation to the corresponding enals, with the dominant product depending on the presence or absence of water. The versatile synthetic utility of both the allylic acetate and enal products accessible through this methodology is also demonstrated.