Total Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of the Antibiotic Lysocin E and Its Enantiomeric,Epimeric, and N‐Demethylated Analogues

Lysocin E, a macrocyclic peptide, exhibits potent antibacterial activity against methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) through a novel mechanism. The first total synthesis of lysocin E was achieved by applying a full solid‐phase strategy. The developed approach also provides rapid access to the enantiomeric, epimeric, and N‐demethylated analogues of lysocin E. Significantly, the antibacterial activity of the unnatural enantiomer was comparable to that of the natural isomer, suggesting the absence of chiral recognition in its mode of action.     

Biphenomycin B and Derivatives: Total Synthesis and Translation Inhibition

A full account on the synthesis of the antibiotic natural product biphenomycin B and several derivatives is reported, which employs a Suzuki coupling reaction of a free carboxylic acid and macrolactam formation as key transformations. Liberal exchange of the central amino acid was demonstrated. This procedure gave derivatives to study the influence of the polar side chain of the central amino acids on translation inhibition.     

Solid‐Phase Total Synthesis of Yaku'amide B Enabled by Traceless Staudinger Ligation

We report a solid‐phase strategy for total synthesis of the peptidic natural product yaku'amide B ( 1 ), which exhibits antiproliferative activity against various cancer cells. Its linear tridecapeptide sequence bears four β,β‐dialkylated α,β‐dehydroamino acid residues and is capped with an N‐terminal acyl group (NTA) and a C‐terminal amine (CTA). To realize the Fmoc‐based solid‐phase synthesis of this complex structure, we developed new methods for enamide formation, enamide deprotection, and C‐terminal modification. First, traceless Staudinger ligation enabled enamide formation between sterically encumbered alkenyl azides and newly designed phosphinophenol esters. Second, application of Eu(OTf)₃ led to chemoselective removal of the enamide Boc groups without detaching the resin linker. Finally, resin‐cleavage and C‐terminus modification were simultaneously achieved with an ester–amide exchange reaction using CTA and AlMe₃ to deliver 1 in 9.1 % overall yield (24 steps from the resin).     

Divergent Solid-Phase Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Yaku'amide B and Its Seven E/Z Isomers

Yaku′amide B ( 1 ) inhibits cancer cell growth through a unique mechanism of action. Compound 1 binds to mitochondrial F_oF₁-ATP synthase, inhibits ATP production, and enhances ATP hydrolysis. The presence of one (E)- and two (Z)-α,β-dehydroisoleucines (ΔIle) in the linear 13-mer sequence is the most unusual structural feature of 1 . To uncover the biological importance of these residues, we synthesized 1 and its seven E/Z isomers 2 – 8 by devising a new divergent solid-phase strategy. Both the (E)- and (Z)-ΔIle residues were stereoselectively constructed by traceless Staudinger ligation on resin to ultimately deliver 1 – 8 . All isomers 2 – 8 displayed effects on the inhibition of cell growth and ATP production, and enhanced ATP hydrolysis, thus indicating that 2 – 8 share the same mode of action as 1 . The least potent isomer, 8 , was isomeric at three ΔIle residues of the most potent 1 . These findings together indicate that the E/Z stereochemistry of the three ΔIle residues controls the magnitude of the biological functions of 1 .     

Synthesis,Structural Reassignment,and Antibacterial Evaluation of 2,18‐Seco‐Lankacidinol B

Lankacidins are a group of polyketide natural products with activity against several strains of Gram‐positive bacteria. We developed a route to stereochemically diverse variants of 2,18‐seco‐lankacidinol B and found that the stereochemical assignment at C4 requires revision. This has interesting implications for the biosynthesis of natural products of the lankacidin class, all of which possessed uniform stereochemistry prior to this finding. We have evaluated 2,18‐seco‐lankacidinol B and three stereochemical derivatives against a panel of pathogenic Gram‐positive and Gram‐negative bacteria.     

Total Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of the Glycosylated Macrocyclic Antibiotic Mangrolide A

The macrocyclic antibiotic mangrolide A has been described to exhibit potent activity against a number of clinically important Gram‐negative pathogens. Reported is the first enantioselective total synthesis of mangrolide A and derivatives. Salient features of this synthesis include a highly convergent macrocycle preparation, stereoselective synthesis of the disaccharide moiety, and two β‐selective glycosylations. The synthesis of mangrolide A and its analogues enabled the re‐examination of its activity against bacterial pathogens, and only minimal activity was observed.     

Total Synthesis of Aspergillomarasmine A and Related Compounds: A Sulfamidate Approach Enables Exploration of Structure–Activity Relationships

The fungal secondary metabolite aspergillomarasmine A (AMA) has recently been identified as an inhibitor of metallo‐β‐lactamases NDM‐1 and VIM‐2. Described herein is an efficient and practical route to AMA and its related compounds by a sulfamidate approach. In addition, a series of derivatives has been prepared and tested for biological activity in an effort to explore preliminary structure activity relationships. While it was determined that natural LLL isomer of AMA remains the most effective inactivator of NDM‐1 enzyme activity both in vitro and in cells, the structure is highly tolerant of the changes in the stereochemistry at positions 3, 6, and 9.     

Total Synthesis of Nosiheptide

Total synthesis of the bismacrocyclic thiopeptide antibiotic nosiheptide was achieved through the assembly of a fully functionalized linear precursor followed by consecutive macrocyclizations. Key features are a critical macrothiolactonization and a mild deprotection strategy for the 3‐hydroxypyridine core. The natural product was identical to isolated authentic material in terms of spectral data and antibiotic activity.     

Total Synthesis of Myceliothermophins C,D, and E

The total synthesis of cytotoxic polyketides myceliothermophins E ( 1 ), C ( 2 ), and D ( 3 ) through a cascade‐based cyclization to form the trans‐fused decalin system is described. The convergent synthesis delivered all three natural products through late‐stage divergence and facilitated unambiguous C21 structural assignments for 2 and 3 through X‐ray crystallographic analysis, which revealed an interesting dimeric structure between its enantiomeric forms.     

Synthesis of the Pluramycins 2: Total Synthesis and Structure Assignment of Saptomycin B

A concise, highly convergent total synthesis of saptomycin B, a member of the pluramycin class of antitumor antibiotics, is reported. The target compound was assembled from four building blocks (a tricyclic platform, two sugars, and an alkynal) in 15% yield through 10 synthetic operations. The key steps included the regioselective installation of two amino sugars (L ‐vancosamine and D ‐angolosamine) on the tricycle and the efficient construction of the tetracyclic skeleton by an aldol reaction followed by formation of the pyranone. The unknown configuration at C14 was assigned as R.     

Acetylenic Replacement of Albicidin's Methacrylamide Residue Circumvents Detrimental E/Z Photoisomerization and Preserves Antibacterial Activity

The natural product albicidin is a highly potent inhibitor of bacterial DNA gyrase. Its outstanding activity, particularly against Gram-negative pathogens, qualifies it as a promising lead structure in the search for new antibacterial drugs. However, as we show here, the N-terminal cinnamoyl moiety of albicidin is susceptible to photochemical E/Z isomerization. Moreover, the newly formed Z isomer exhibits significantly reduced antibacterial activity, which hampers the development and biological evaluation of albicidin and potent derivatives thereof. Hence, we synthesized 13 different variants of albicidin in which the vulnerable para-coumaric acid moiety was replaced; this yielded photostable analogues. Biological activity assays revealed that diaryl alkyne analogues exhibited virtually undiminished antibacterial efficacy. This promising scaffold will therefore serve as a blueprint for the design of a potent albicidin-based drug.     

Total Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Grassypeptolide A

Herein, we describe in full our investigations into the synthesis of grassypeptolide A ( 1 ) in 17 linear steps with an overall yield of 11.3 %. In particular, this work features the late‐stage introduction of sensitive bis(thiazoline) heterocycles and 31‐membered macrocyclization conducted at the sterically congested secondary amide site in superb conversion (72 % yield). Biological evaluation indicated that grassypeptolide A significantly inhibited cancer cell proliferation in a dose‐dependent manner. It induced cancer cell apoptosis, which was associated with increased cleavage of poly(ADP‐ribose) polymerase (PARP) and decreased expression of bcl‐2 and bcl‐xL. Furthermore, grassypeptolide A also caused cell cycle redistribution by increasing cells in the G1 phase and decreasing cells in the S and G2 phases. In addition, cell cycle arrest was correlated with downregulation of cyclin D and upregulation of p27 and p21.     

Solid‐Phase Combinatorial Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Destruxin E Analogues

The solid‐phase combinatorial synthesis of cyclodepsipeptide destruxin E has been demonstrated. The combinatorial synthesis of cyclization precursors 8 was achieved by using a split and pool method on SynPhase Lanterns. The products were successfully macrolactonized in parallel in the solution phase by using 2‐methyl‐6‐nitrobenzoic anhydride and 4‐(dimethylamino)pyridine N‐oxide to afford macrolactones 9 , and the subsequent formation of an epoxide in the side chain gave 18 member destruxin E analogues 6 . Biological evaluation of analogues 6 indicated that the N‐MeAla residue was crucial to the induction of morphological changes in osteoclast‐like multinuclear cells (OCLs). Based on structure–activity relationships, azido‐containing analogues 15 were then designed for use as a molecular probe. The synthesis and biological evaluation of analogues 15 revealed that 15 b , in which the Ile residue was replaced with a Lys(N₃) residue, induced morphological changes in OCLs at a sufficient concentration, and modification around the Ile residue would be tolerated for attachment of a chemical tag toward the target identification of destruxin E ( 1 ).     

The Total Synthesis of the Bioactive Natural Product Plantazolicin A and Its Biosynthetic Precursor Plantazolicin B

Herein, we describe our full investigations into the synthesis of the peptide‐derived natural product plantazolicin A, a compound that demonstrates promising selective activity against the causative agent of anthrax toxicity, and its biosynthetic precursor plantazolicin B. This report particularly focuses on the challenging preparation of the arginine containing thiazole fragment, including the development of a robust, high yielding procedure that avoids the use of sulfurating agents. Extensive studies on the design of a coherent protecting group strategy and the establishment of a step‐efficient dicyclization/oxidation approach allowed high levels of convergence for the construction of the oxazole fragments. This has led to a unified, highly convergent synthesis for both plantazolicin A and B.