A New Reaction of Isatin,Cyclic 1,3‐Diketone,and 2‐Cyanoacetamide: A Four‐Component Synthesis of Spirooxindoles

A novel reaction of isatins, 2‐cyanoacetamide, and cyclic 1,3‐diketones in ethanol was reported. The reaction gave the unexpected spirooxindole ethyl carboxylates in excellent yields and the spirooxindole carboxamide was not observed.     

Use of the intramolecular Heck reaction for forming congested quaternary carbon stereocenters. Stereocontrolled total synthesis of (+/-)-gelsemine

Intramolecular Heck reactions of alpha,beta-unsaturated 2-haloanilides derived from azatricyclo[4.4.0.0(2,8)]decanone 5 efficiently install the congested spirooxindole functionality of gelsemine. Depending upon the Heck reaction conditions and the nature of the beta-substituent, either products having the natural or unnatural configuration of the spirooxindole group are formed predominantly. Efforts to elaborate the hydropyran ring of gelsemine from the endo-oriented nitrile substituent of pentacyclic Heck product 18 were unsuccessful. Important steps in the ultimately successful route to (+/-)-gelsemine (1) are as follows: (a) intramolecular Heck reaction of tricyclic beta-methoxy alpha,beta-unsaturated 2-iodoanilide 68 in the presence of silver phosphate to form pentacyclic product 69 having the unnatural configuration of the spirooxindole fragment, (b) formation of hexacyclic aziridine 80 from the reaction of cyanide with intermediate 79 containing an N-methoxycarbonyl-beta-bromoethylamine fragment, (c) introduction of C17 by ring-opening of the aziridinium ion derived from aziridine 80, and (d) base-promoted skeletal rearrangement of pentacyclic equatorial alcohol 82 to form the oxacyclic ring and invert the spirooxindole functional group to provide hexacyclic gelsemine precursor 83.     

Efficient One‐Pot Synthesis of Novel Spirooxindole‐Fused Phosphorous Heterocycle Derivatives by a Three‐Component Domino Reaction

A highly efficient, catalyst‐free, and regioselective synthesis of structurally diverse spirooxindole‐fused phosphorous heterocycle derivatives was constructed in good yields by means of a three‐component domino reaction of isatins, dichlorophenylphosphine or phenyl phosphorodichloridite, and o‐aminophenol in tetrahydrofuran reflux. The advantages of this method include high efficiency, mild reaction conditions, and environmentally benign reagents. These spirooxindole‐fused phosphorous heterocycles are promising candidates for drug discovery.     

Synthesis of Quaternary Spirooxindole 2H-Azirines under Batch and Continuous Flow Condition and Metal Assisted Umpolung Reactivity for the Ring-Opening Reaction

An efficient and new approach for the synthesis of spirooxindole 2H-azirines via intramolecular oxidative cyclization of 3-(amino(phenyl)methylene)-indolin-2-one derivatives in the presence of I₂ and Cs₂CO₃ under batch/continuous flow is described. This method is mild and facile to synthesize a variety of spirooxindole 2H-azirines derivatives in gram-scale. Furthermore, we have synthesized spiroaziridine derivatives from spirooxindole 2H-azirines derivatives via addition of Grignard reagent. In addition, we discloses an metal assisted attack of Grignard nucleophile at N-centre rather than C- of the spirooxindole 2H-azirines, which concurrently underwent ring opening of transient aziridines to afford N-substituted Z-3-(aminophenyl)indolin-2-one. A plausible mechanism for azirination and ring-opening reaction is also presented.     

A mild and green chemistry approach for the synthesis of symmetrical spirooxindole derivatives

A simple and eco-friendly synthesis of the biologically important spirooxindole scaffold was done by the reaction of isatin with activated pyrazolones in the presence of a catalytic amount of p-toluenesulfonic acid in water at room temperature. A variety of symmetrical spirooxindole derivatives were obtained with excellent yields within short reaction time. This method is of great value because of its environmentally benign character, high yield, and easy handling.     

An efficient one‐pot three‐component reaction for synthesis of spirooxindole derivatives in water media under catalyst‐free condition

An efficient, clean, and environmentally benign synthesis of spirooxindole derivatives by one‐pot three‐component reaction of isatins, malononitrile, and carbonyl compound in the absence of catalysis in water was described. A variety of spirooxindole derivatives were obtained with excellent yields within short reaction time. This novel protocol has the advantages of convenient operation, low cost, and environmental benign. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heteroatom Chem 22:673–677, 2011; View this article online at wileyonlinelibrary.com . DOI 10.1002/hc.20723     

An efficiently and quickly synthesized NiO@g-C3N4 nanocomposite-catalyzed green synthesis of spirooxindole derivatives

Research on Chemical Intermediates - NiO@g-C3N4 as an efficient catalyst for the synthesis of spirooxindole derivatives was prepared by impregnation of g-C3N4 with NiO nanoparticles and...     

DMAP-catalyzed four-component one-pot synthesis of highly functionalized spirooxindole-1,4-dihydropyridines derivatives in aqueous ethanol

An efficient, clean, and environmental friendly ‘one-pot’ four-component reaction was developed for assembling a novel type of spirooxindole derivatives containing dihydropyridine and pyrrolidinone. The reaction could be easily performed in aqueous ethanol with 4-DMAP as catalyst in good yields. The high efficiency and the simple and mild condition of the reaction, in addition with its avoidance of time-consuming, costly syntheses, and tedious workup, endowed the reaction with application significance. A series of spirooxindole derivatives were therefore prepared in excellent yields by using this ‘one-pot’ four-component reaction method.     

Synthesis of chiral spiro-cyclopentene/cyclopentadiene-oxindoles through an asymmetric [3 + 2] cycloaddition of isatin-derived MBH carbonates and β,γ-unsaturated α-keto esters

A highly stereoselective [3 + 2] cycloaddition for constructing the chiral spiro-cyclopentene/cyclopentadiene-oxindole skeletons is developed. Under the mild reaction conditions, the straightforward cyclization of isatin-derived MBH carbonates and β,γ-unsaturated α-keto esters involving a chiral tertiary amine catalyst provides the corresponding spirooxindole derivatives with an extraordinary level of diastereo- and enantioselectivities. Further synthetic utility of this protocol is demonstrated by the gram-scale experiment and functional transformation of the synthetic compound into other structurally diverse spirooxindole.     

Domino Pd-catalyzed Heck cyclization and bismuth-catalyzed hydroamination: formal synthesis of elacomine and isoelacomine

The formal synthesis of hemiterpene spirooxindole alkaloids elacomine (1) and isoelacomine (2) is described. Heck reaction of protected iodoanilines with 5,6-dihydro-2H-pyran-2-one or six-membered unsaturated lactams was investigated. The coupling product was readily converted to a carbamoyl chloride with an incorporated diene unit. The spiro(pyrrolidine-3,3'-oxindole) skeleton, which corresponds to the carbon skeleton of 1 and 2, was efficiently constructed from this intermediate by using a domino palladium-catalyzed Heck reaction and bismuth-catalyzed hydroamination. An isolated byproduct of the reaction could also be converted to the spirooxindole skeleton.     

Concise, stereoselective approach to the spirooxindole ring system of citrinadin A

The spirooxindole ring system of citrinadin A has been synthesized with excellent control over the absolute stereochemistry at the spirocenter. The key step involves a novel diastereoselective DMDO-mediated oxidative rearrangement employing an 8-phenylmenthol chiral auxiliary on the indole nitrogen.     

Protecting‐Group‐Free Total Synthesis and Biological Investigation of Cabucine Oxindole A†

Owing to their challenging structures and promising biological profiles, spirooxindole alkaloids have long attracted much attention from the synthetic community. Herein, we wish to describe a concise, protecting‐group‐free total synthesis of cabucine oxindole A, a putative natural spirooxindole alkaloid and a possible biosynthetic congener of cabucine and palmirine. Key transformations of our approach include a one‐step, organocatalytic and enantioselective construction of the spiro[pyrrolidine‐3,3’‐oxindole] moiety and a Korte rearrangement to furnish the final dihydropyran motif. Biological investigation of 1 and its synthetic intermediates revealed lactone 2 as a mild MOLT‐4 and MCF7 cell line inhibitor.     

Synthesis of (1‐(Aminomethyl)‐2,3‐dihydro‐1H‐inden‐3‐yl)methanol: Structural Confirmation of the Main Band Impurity Found in Varenicline® Starting Material

A clean, simple, one-pot, three-component synthesis of some important spirooxindole derivatives in the presence of tetrabutylammonium bromide (TBAB) was carried out under green and environmentally benign conditions.     

Organocatalytic stereocontrolled synthesis of 3,3'-pyrrolidinyl spirooxindoles by [3+2] annulation of isocyanoesters with methyleneindolinones

A stereoselective [3+2] cycloaddition of isocyanoesters to methyleneindolinones catalyzed by a quinine-based thiourea-tertiary amine has been successfully developed. Just by tuning the protecting groups on substrates, a variety of optically enriched 3,3'-pyrrolidinyl spirooxindole diastereomers could be obtained in excellent enantioselectivities (up to 99% ee).     

Morphological Profiling Identifies the Motor Protein Eg5 as Cellular Target of Spirooxindoles

Oxindoles and iso-oxindoles are natural product-derived scaffolds that provide inspiration for the design and synthesis of novel biologically relevant compound classes. Notably, the spirocyclic connection of oxindoles with iso-oxindoles has not been explored by nature but promises to provide structurally related compounds endowed with novel bioactivity. Therefore, methods for their efficient synthesis and the conclusive discovery of their cellular targets are highly desirable. We describe a selective Rh^III-catalyzed scaffold-divergent synthesis of spirooxindole–isooxindoles and spirooxindole–oxindoles from differently protected diazooxindoles and N-pivaloyloxy aryl amides which includes a functional group-controlled Lossen rearrangement as key step. Unbiased morphological profiling of a corresponding compound collection in the Cell Painting assay efficiently identified the mitotic kinesin Eg5 as the cellular target of the spirooxindoles, defining a unique Eg5 inhibitor chemotype.     

Refactoring the Concise Biosynthetic Pathway of Cyanogramide Unveils Spirooxindole Formation Catalyzed by a P450 Enzyme

Cyanogramide ( 1 ) from the marine actinomycete Actinoalloteichus cyanogriseus WH1‐2216‐6 features a unique spirooxindole skeleton and exhibits significant bioactivity to efficiently reverse drug resistance in tumor cells. The biosynthetic gene cluster of 1 in A. cyanogriseus WH1‐2216‐6 was identified and refactored by promoter engineering for heterologous expression in Streptomyces coelicolor YF11, thereby enabling the production of 1 and five new derivatives. Interesting, four of them, including 1 , were identified as enantiomeric mixtures in different ratios. The functions of tailoring enzymes, including two methyltransferases (CyaEF), and three cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (CyaGHI) were confirmed by gene inactivation and feeding experiments, leading to the elucidation of a concise biosynthetic pathway for 1 . Notably, CyaH was biochemically verified to catalyze the formation of the spirooxindole skeleton in 1 through an unusual carbocation‐mediated semipinacol‐type rearrangement reaction.     

Design,synthesis and insecticidal activity of spiro heterocycle containing neonicotinoid analogs

Spiro heterocycles frequently occur in bioactive molecules. In the pursuit of neonicotinoids with spiro hererocycles, three types of novel neonicotinoids with spirobenzofuranone, spirooxindole or spiroacenaphythylenone framework were designed and synthesized. Insecticidal evaluation showed that some of spirobenzofuranone containing neonicotinoids exhibited moderate activity against cowpea aphid, armyworm or brown planthopper.     

Highly stereoselective Brønsted acid catalyzed synthesis of spirooxindole pyrans

A Br?nsted acid-catalyzed Prins-type cyclization sequence to construct spirooxindole pyrans in high yields and excellent diastereoselectivity has been developed. The combination of a β-hydroxy dioxinone fragment and isatin dimethyl acetal generate oxa-spirooxindoles efficiently. These compounds are diversifiable scaffolds that tap into the rich chemistry of dioxinones.     

One‐Pot Three‐Component Synthesis of Spirooxindoles Catalyzed by Hexamethylenetetramine in Water

A simple, convenient, and multicomponent strategy for synthesis of spirooxindole derivatives has been developed. This strategy provides a rapid access to construct a diversity‐oriented library of spirooxindoles by using three simple and readily available isatin, malononitrile or cyanoacetic ester, and 1,3‐dicarbonyl compound catalyzed by hexamethylenetetramine in water.     

Rhodium-catalyzed asymmetric formal cycloadditions of racemic butadiene monoxide with imines

A simple chiral sulfur-alkene hybrid ligand has proven to be highly effective for rhodium-catalyzed formal cycloaddition reactions of racemic butadiene monoxide and imines to furnish spirooxindole oxazolidines or 1,3-oxazolidines with high yields and stereoselectivities. A possible dynamic kinetic resolution as well as a kinetic resolution is considered to be involved in this catalytic process.