Synthesis of Boc-Amino Tetrazoles Derived from α-Amino Acids

A simple route for the synthesis of Boc-protected tetrazole analogs of amino acids starting from N ^α-Boc amino acids has been described. The [2 + 3] cycloaddition of Boc-α-amino nitrile and sodium azide in the presence of a catalytic amount of zinc bromide yielded the desired tetrazoles in good yields and purity. All the compounds obtained have been characterized by ¹H and ¹³C-NMR and mass spectral studies.     

Cu-Catalyzed Asymmetric Kinetic Boron Conjugate Addition of γ-Substituted α,β-Unsaturated γ-Lactams

Chiral α,β-unsaturated γ-lactams bearing simple γ- substituents are found in biologically active molecules and natural products, however, their synthesis still remains difficult. Herein, we report an efficient kinetic resolution (KR) of γ-substituted α,β-unsaturated γ-lactams via a Cu-catalyzed asymmetric boron conjugate addition, which also leads to the efficient synthesis of chiral β-hydroxy-γ-lactams with β,γ-stereogenic carbon centers. The KR proceeded smoothly with a wide range of γ-alkyl or aryl substituted substrates including those bearing aromatic heterocycles and different N-protected substrates in up to 347 of s value. Their highly versatile transformations, synthetic utility in biologically active molecules, and inhibitory activities against cisplatin-sensitive ovarian cancer cell A2780 have also been demonstrated. Differing from the well-known mechanism involving Cu−B species in Cu-catalyzed boron conjugate additions, our mechanistic studies using density functional theory (DFT) calculations and experiments indicate that a Lewis acid Cu^I-catalyzed mechanism is the likely pathway in the catalytic reaction.     

Enzymatic Synthesis of Noncanonical α-Amino Acids Containing γ-Tertiary Alcohols

Noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs) containing tertiary alcohols are valuable as precursors of natural products and active pharmaceutical ingredients. However, the assembly of such ncAA scaffolds from simple material by C−C bond formation remains a challenging task due to the presence of multiple stereocenters and large steric hindrance. In this study, we present a novel solution to this problem through highly selective enzymatic decarboxylative aldol addition. This method allows for the streamlined assembly of multifunctionalized ncAAs with γ-tertiary alcohols from readily available materials, such as _L-aspartatic acid and isatins, vicinal diones and keto esters. The modularity of electrophiles furnished four classes of ncAAs with decent efficiency as well as excellent site and stereocontrol. Computational modeling was employed to gain detailed insight into the catalytic mechanism and to provide a rationale for the observed selectivities. The method offers a single-step approach to producing multifunctionalized ncAAs, which can be directly utilized in peptide synthesis and bioactivity assessment.     

New Synthesis of α-Bromo-α,β-Unsaturated Esters

A synthesis of α-bromo-α,β-unsaturated esters 2 from tert-butyl α-(trimethylsilyl)-α-bromoacetate (1) and carbonyl compounds is described.     

The Simple Synthesis of Chiral Polyazaoxacoronands Derived from α-Amino Acids

Abstract

Bisamidation of oxaloyl chloride using L-amino acid methyl ester hydrochlorides afforded chiral diesters. The following reactions of diesters with 2,2-(ethylene-dioxy)diethylamine, afforded tetramides possessing C₂ symmetry. Coupling of N-hydroxysuccinimide ester of N-benzyloxycarbonyl-L-alanine with 1,5-diamino-3-oxapentane, followed by cleavage of protecting groups, afforded an optically active diamine, which was transformed consequently into tetramide via the reaction with diglycolic acid dimethyl ester under high pressure conditions.     

Cobalt-Catalyzed Asymmetric Deuteration of α-Amidoacrylates for Stereoselective Synthesis of α,β-Dideuterated α-Amino Acids

A cobalt-catalyzed deuteration of amidoacrylates using deuterated methanol afforded α,β-dideuterio-α-amino esters in excellent enantiomeric ratios (mostly >95 : 5) and almost complete deuteration (99 %). The new protocol was used to prepare dideuterio-α-amino acid fragments in some drugs. Furthermore, the stereoselective deuteration was applied in a concise synthesis of dideuterio l -DOPA.     

Synthesis of Potential Cytotoxic α-Methylene γ-Lactams

α-Methylene γ-lactones are known to have physiological activity, especially as cytotoxic agents, and are widely found in nature (1). However they are often toxic which makes them inappropriate for cancer treatment.     

Synthesis of α,β-Unsaturated Ketones via Enamines

Acylation of an enamine followed by acid hydrolysis constitutes the well-known Stork's reaction of synthesizing β-diketones.^1,2 This article reports that the acylated enamine 1 which corresponds to monoenamine of a β-diketone can be hydrogenated to a Mannich base 2 which on elimination by heating or treatment with acid yields the α, β-unsaturated ketone 3; further hydrogenation gives saturated ketone 4 in good yield (Scheme 1). A similar transformation effected by hydroboration has been reported by Montury and Góre.     

Polyenolates of Unsaturated Carboxylic Acids in Synthesis. Synthesis of Unsaturated α-Amino Acids and β-Hydrazing Acids

Regioselective reaction of lithium diene-and triene-diolates 1 and 2 with O-diphenylphosphinyl hydroxylamine affords unsaturated α-amino acids 3 and 4. Addition to DEAD leads selectively to γ-hydrazino unsaturated acids 5 and 6.     

Engineered Biocatalytic Synthesis of β-N-Substituted-α-Amino Acids

Non-canonical amino acids (ncAAs) are useful synthons for the development of new medicines, materials, and probes for bioactivity. Recently, enzyme engineering has been leveraged to produce a suite of highly active enzymes for the synthesis of β-substituted amino acids. However, there are few examples of biocatalytic N-substitution reactions to make α,β-diamino acids. In this study, we used directed evolution to engineer the β-subunit of tryptophan synthase, TrpB, for improved activity with diverse amine nucleophiles. Mechanistic analysis shows that high yields are hindered by product re-entry into the catalytic cycle and subsequent decomposition. Additional equivalents of l -serine can inhibit product reentry through kinetic competition, facilitating preparative scale synthesis. We show β-substitution with a dozen aryl amine nucleophiles, including demonstration on a gram scale. These transformations yield an underexplored class of amino acids that can serve as unique building blocks for chemical biology and medicinal chemistry.     

Synthesis of β-Lactams from Acids and Imines Using Thiocarbonyldiimidazole

Thiocarbonyldiimidazole has been found to be an efficient acid activator for the synthesis of β-lactams by ketene-imine cycloaddition at room temperature. The experimental procedure is simple and results in excellent yields of the products. All products were characterized by spectral data and elemental analyses.     

Ring-Closing Metathesis in the Synthesis of Cyclic α-Amino Acids

The review summarizes recent advances in the synthesis of cyclic -amino acids via intramolecular ring-closing metathesis of dienes and enynes.     

Diastereoselective α-Alkylation of β-Amino Esters: Preparation of Novel α-Substituted β-Amino Esters from α-Amino Acids

b-Amino acids and their derivatives have attracted considerable attention in recent years due to their occurrence in biologically active natural products, such as dolastatins 11, cyclohexylnorstatine 22 and taxol 33. bAmino acids also find application in the synthesis of blactams4, piperidines5, indolizidines6. Moreover, the peptides consisting of bamino acids, the so called bpeptides, have been extensively studied recently7. Consequently, considerable efforts have been directed to the synt…     

Effect of Temperature on The Solubility of α-Amino Acids and α,ω-Amino Acids in Water

The aqueous solubilities of glycine, dl-α-alanine (2-aminopropanoic acid), dl-α-aminobutyric acid (2-aminobutanoic acid), dl-α-norvaline (2-aminopentanoic acid), dl-α-norleucine (2-aminohexanoic acid), β-alanine (3-aminopropanoic acid), γ-aminobutyric acid (4-aminobutanoic acid), 5-aminovaleric acid (5-aminopentanoic acid), and 6-aminocaproic acid (6-aminohexanoic acid) were determined from 293.15 to 323.15 K at intervals of 5.00 K using the gravimetric method. The temperature dependence of the solubility of α-amino acids and α,ω-amino acids in water is well described by the van’t Hoff equation. Linear van’t Hoff plots were used to determine the differential enthalpy of solution. The results obtained are compared with reported values in literature and are discussed in terms of the position of the ionic groups in the hydrocarbon chain.     

Synthesis of Enantiopure Dehydropiperidinones from α-Amino Acids and Alkynes via Azetidin-3-ones

Chiral dehydropiperidinones were synthesized in enantiopure form from α-amino acids and alkynes via azetidin-3-ones.     

Convenient Synthesis of Acyloins from Saturated Ethoxyethyl-Protected Cyanohydrins and α,β-Unsaturated Aldehydes

Functionalized acyloins have been synthesized via Umpolung from saturated ethoxyethyl-protected cyanohydrins and α,β-unsaturated aldehydes.     

A Facile Synthesis of α-Phenylchalcogeno(S,Se) α,β-Unsaturated Esters from Ethyl α-Bromo-α-phenylchalcogeno Acetates

Ethyl α-bromo-α-phenylseleno acetate 1 and ethyl α-bromo-α-phenylthio acetate 2 react with aldehydes in the presence of dibutyltelluride to give α-phenylchalcogeno-α,β-unsaturated esters, with Z preferential stereochemistry.     

Practical Synthesis of Pharmaceutically Relevant Pyrroles from α,β-Unsaturated Aldehydes and Phenacyl Azides

Structurally diverse pyrroles were synthesized by direct coupling of α, β-unsaturated aldehydes and phenacyl azides. The scope of the synthetic method was successfully demonstrated by synthesizing 28 different phenyl(5-phenyl-1H-pyrrol-2-yl)methanones in high yields (87–95 %). Derivatization of a few synthesized pyrroles was demonstrated which shows the potential application of the developed protocol in new functional materials. To get a mechanistic insight of the reaction, a typical reaction was performed in a deuterated solvent and the progress of the reaction was monitored by recording its ¹H NMR at regular time intervals.     

The Synthesis of Diphenyl Phosphonate Analogues of α-Amino Acids as Enzyme Inhibitors

Abstract

α-Aminoalkylphosphonic acids are analogues of natural aminoacids and as such have been the subject of much research effort over past years¹. The diphenyl esters of α- aminoalkylphosphonic acids are particularly potent and show high selectivity as irreversible inhibitors of serine proteinases. Thus far, α-aminoalkylphosphonic acid ester analogues of a number of aliphatic- and aromatic aminoacids have been prepared including valine, phenylalanine, tryptophan, and tyrosine², and the basic aminoacids ornithine, lysine. etc.³. We have now also prepared the a-diphenyl phosphonate analogues of the acidic aminoacids, aspartic and glutamic⁴. These have been examined as potential inactivators of serine proteinases exhibiting a P₁ specificity for aspartate and glutamate, e.g. S. aureus V8 protease and granzyme B.