Stereocontrolled synthesis of spiroketals via Ti(Oi-Pr)4-mediated kinetic spirocyclization of glycal epoxides with retention of configuration

A Ti(Oi-Pr)4-mediated kinetic spiroketalization reaction has been developed for the stereocontrolled target- and diversity-oriented synthesis of spiroketals. In contrast to most existing methods for spiroketal synthesis, this reaction does not rely upon thermodynamic control over the stereochemical configuration at the anomeric carbon. Stereochemically diverse glycals are first alkylated at the C1-position to introduce a hydroxyl-bearing side chain, then epoxidized stereoselectively. Treatment with Ti(Oi-Pr)4 leads to an unusual kinetic epoxide-opening spirocyclization (spirocycloisomerization) with retention of configuration at the anomeric carbon. The reaction is proposed to proceed via a chelation-controlled mechanism and has been used to form five-, six-, and seven-membered rings with stereochemically diverse substituents. This approach may also be useful for the related intermolecular beta-mannosidation reaction. This Ti(Oi-Pr)4-mediated spirocyclization is stereochemically complementary to our previously reported MeOH-induced spirocyclization, which proceeds with inversion of configuration, and together, these reactions provide comprehensive access to systematically stereochemically diversified spiroketals.     

The first total synthesis of nakadomarin A

(-)-Nakadomarin A is a member of manzamine alkaloid isolated from a marine sponge and have a unique hexacyclic structure. The first total synthesis of (+)-nakadomarin A, an enantiomer of natural product, has been accomplished from stereochemically defined 4-oxopiperidin-3-carboxylic acid derivative. The synthesis established the structure of nakadomarin A including absolute configuration.     

Asymmetric synthesis of functionalized aza-cyclic amino acids with quaternary stereocenters by a phase-transfer-catalyzed alkylation strategy

[Reaction: see text] Practical asymmetric synthesis of functionalized aza-cyclic alpha-amino acid derivatives possessing quaternary stereocenters has been achieved by the phase-transfer-catalyzed alkylation of 2 or 3 using chiral quaternary ammonium bromide 1 as catalyst. Subsequent reduction and alkylation of the 3-keto carbonyl moiety of 4 proceeded with complete diastereochemical control to afford the corresponding beta-hydroxy aza-cyclic alpha-amino acid derivatives having stereochemically defined consecutive quaternary carbon centers.     

Enantioselective synthesis of alkyl-branched alkanes. Synthesis Of the stereoisomers of 7,11-dimethylheptadecane and 7-methylheptadecane, components of the pheromone of lambdina species

The stereoisomers of 7,11-dimethylheptadecane and 7-methylheptadecane have been synthesized. The key step used has been the intramolecular hydride transfer from a secondary gamma-benzyloxy group with defined absolute stereochemistry to a cation generated by Lewis acid treatment of the suitable tertiary Co(2)(CO)(6)-complexed propargylic alcohol. The application of this method provided stereochemically defined alpha-alkyl-gamma-hydroxy-acetylenes that after hydrogenation and further reductive elimination of the hydroxyl group yielded sec-alkyl hydrocarbons.     

Studies toward the synthesis of pinolidoxin, a phytotoxic nonenolide from the fungus Ascochyta pinodes. Determination of the configuration at the C-7, C-8, and C-9 chiral centers and stereoselective synthesis of the C(6)-C(18) fragment

The absolute stereochemistry at the C-7, C-8, and C-9 chiral centers of pinolidoxin (1) has been determined by chemical and spectral methods. First, the synthesis of four stereoisomeric fully benzoylated 2,3-erythro-1,2,3,4-heptanetetrols, corresponding to the C(6)-C(18) portion of the natural substance, has been accomplished starting from meso-tartaric acid. As next step, the selection of the synthetic tetrabenzoate possessing "natural" stereochemistry (10a'), suitable for absolute configuration determination, has been carried out by correlation with its "natural" homologue derived from degradation of pinolidoxin. Determination of the stereochemistry at the title chiral centers has been carried out by application of the Mosher's method both to 7a', a compound stereochemically related to 10a', and to pinolidoxin itself. The stereoselective synthesis of a protected form of the C(6)-C(18) portion of pinolidoxin, to be used in its total synthesis, has also been accomplished starting from commercially available D-erythronolactone.     

Stereocontrolled synthesis of the sterically encumbered F ring of lancifodilactone G

A stereochemically linear strategy has been developed to prepare the heavily congested F-ring sector of lancifodilactone G (1) from commercially inexpensive (R)-carvone. Prominent operations in our synthesis include Negishi-type sp2-sp3 cross-coupling and intramolecular free-radical cyclization for the purpose of appending the sidearm links of the D and H rings onto the F platform.     

A total synthesis of guanacastepene C

A total synthesis of the structure corresponding to the novel tricyclic diterpene guanacastepene C has been realized in which a Knoevenagel cyclization serves as a key step to annulate the six-membered C-ring on a stereochemically secured bicyclic hydroazulene precursor.     

Chlorosulfolipids: structure, synthesis, and biological relevance

Chlorosulfolipids have been isolated from freshwater algae and from toxic mussels. They appear to have a structural role in algal membranes and have been implicated in Diarrhetic Shellfish Poisoning. Further fascinating aspects of these compounds include their stereochemically complex polychlorinated structures and the resulting strong conformational biases, and their poorly understood (yet surely compelling) biosynthesis. Discussions of each of these topics and of efforts in structural and stereochemical elucidation and synthesis are the subject of this Highlight.     

Total synthesis and stereochemistry of pinnatoxins B and C

[Structure: see text] Pinnatoxins B and C were synthesized from diols (34R)-3b and (34S)-3a, respectively, in a stereochemically controlled manner. Through extensive analysis of the 1H NMR spectra of synthetic PnTXs B and C, the diagnostic NMR signals were first identified to differentiate (34S)- and (34R)-diastereomers and then used to establish the C34 configuration of natural PnTXs B and C as 34S and 34R, respectively.     

Supramolecular lead(II) azide complex of 2,6-diacetylpyridine dihydrazone: synthesis,molecular structure,and biological activity

The complex of 2,6-diacetylpyridinedihydrazone (L) with lead(II) and azide has been characterized by elemental analyses, FTIR, and single-crystal X-ray analysis. The Pb(C₉H₁₃N₁₁) (1) crystallized in the monoclinic space group C2/c. The coordination of 1 exhibits a gap around the lead(II), possibly occupied by a stereochemically active electron lone pair on lead(II) resulting in a hemidirected complex. Antimicrobial activity of the complex is higher than the free ligand.     

Design, synthesis, conformational analysis and nucleic acid hybridisation properties of thymidyl pyrrolidine-amide oligonucleotide mimics (POM)

Pyrrolidine-amide oligonucleotide mimics (POM) 1 were designed to be stereochemically and conformationally similar to natural nucleic acids, but with an oppositely charged, cationic backbone. Molecular modelling reveals that the lowest energy conformation of a thymidyl-POM monomer is similar to the conformation adopted by ribonucleosides. An efficient solution phase synthesis of the thymidyl POM oligomers has been developed, using both N-alkylation and acylation coupling strategies. 1H NMR spectroscopy confirmed that the highly water soluble thymidyl-dimer, T2-POM, preferentially adopts both a configuration about the pyrrolidine N-atom and an overall conformation in D2O that are very similar to a typical C3'-endo nucleotide in RNA. In addition the nucleic acid hybridisation properties of a thymidyl-pentamer, T5-POM, with an N-terminal phthalimide group were evaluated using both UV spectroscopy and surface plasmon resonance (SPR). It was found that T5-POM exhibits very high affinity for complementary ssDNA and RNA, similar to that of a T5-PNA oligomer. SPR experiments also showed that T5-POM binds with high sequence fidelity to ssDNA under near physiological conditions. In addition, it was found possible to attenuate the binding affinity of T5-POM to ssDNA and RNA by varying both the ionic strength and pH. However, the most striking feature exhibited by T5-POM is an unprecedented kinetic binding selectivity for ssRNA over DNA.     

Total synthesis of (+)-astrophylline

The first total synthesis of (+)-astrophylline (2) has been achieved, starting from readily available enantiomerically pure (+)-(1R,4S)-4-hydroxycyclopent-2-enyl acetate (11). A novel ruthenium-catalyzed ring-closing ring-opening ring-closing metathesis of carbocyclic olefins of general type 5 was the key step, providing the stereochemically well-defined bis-piperidyl skeleton of the target molecule. A [2,3]-Wittig-Still rearrangement of 9 was also employed as the critical transformation in the stereocontrolled generation of the 1,2-trans configuration of the cyclopentene intermediate 6c. Our early synthetic efforts toward 1,2-trans cyclopentene derivatives of type 6, as well as the synthetic pathway to an optimized 13-step total synthesis of 2 (12% overall yield), are reported.     

Multicatalytic asymmetric synthesis of complex tetrahydrocarbazoles via a Diels-Alder/benzoin reaction sequence

Expanding upon the recently developed aminocatalytic asymmetric indole-2,3-quinodimethane strategy, a straightforward synthesis of structurally and stereochemically complex tetrahydrocarbazoles has been devised. The chemistry's complexity-generating power was further harnessed by designing a multicatalytic, one-pot Diels-Alder/benzoin reaction sequence to stereoselectively access trans-fused tetracyclic indole-based compounds having four stereogenic centers with very high fidelity.     

Structural revision and total synthesis of caraphenol B and C

Chemical syntheses of two stereochemically unique resveratrol dimers, caraphenols B and C, have shown that their structures are misassigned. Thoughts on their potential chemical etiology led to an alternate structural proposal that has been confirmed through synthesis, one indicating that the substituents on their respective indane systems exist in a relative trans,trans orientation rather than the originally postulated all-cis arrangement.     

Stereoselective synthesis of allylamines by iron-catalyzed cross-coupling of 3-chloroprop-2-en-1-amines with grignard reagents. Synthesis of naftifine

A general procedure for the synthesis of trans- and cis-allylamines has been developed on the basis of iron-catalyzed cross-coupling of Grignard reagents with stereochemically pure 3-chloroprop-2-en-1-amines prepared by allylation of amines with commercially available 1,3-dichloropropene isomers.     

Stereocontrolled synthesis of all eight stereoisomers of the putative anti-androgen cyoctol

All eight stereoisomers (1-4 and enantiomers) of the putative anti-androgen cyoctol have been synthesized along stereochemically unambiguous routes. The biological tests of all isomers indicated that cyoctol is not an anti-androgen, contrary to the patent literature.     

Progress toward the synthesis of the transtaganolide/basiliolide natural products: an Ireland-Claisen approach

Efforts toward the synthesis of the transtaganolide natural product family are described. A highly efficient Ireland-Claisen/Diels-Alder approach has been developed, which rapidly constructs the highly oxygenated and stereochemically rich core of these natural products.     

Facile synthesis of chiral unsymmetric perylene tetracarboxylic diimides involving α-amino acids

A facile synthesis of chiral unsymmetric perylene tetracarboxylic diimides (PDIs) has been developed and the first two nonracemic chiral amphiphilic PDIs have been synthesized. The key building blocks, AB bifunctional 3,4,9,10-perylenetetracarboxylic-3,4-anhydride-9,10-imides, were prepared conveniently from enantiomerically pure α-amino acids, which were introduced as the steric and stereochemical controlling units. Such building blocks allow the incorporation of sterically and stereochemically controlled PDI moieties into both terminal and inner positions.     

A Facile Method for the Separation of Methionine Sulfoxide Diastereomers,Structural Assignment,and DFT Analysis

Methionine (Met) oxidation is an important biological redox node, with hundreds if not thousands of protein targets. The process yields methionine oxide (MetO). It renders the sulfur chiral, producing two distinct, diastereomerically related products. Despite the biological significance of Met oxidation, a reliable protocol to separate the resultant MetO diastereomers is currently lacking. This hampers our ability to make peptides and proteins that contain stereochemically defined MetO to then study their structural and functional properties. We have developed a facile method that uses supercritical CO₂ chromatography and allows obtaining both diastereomers in purities exceeding 99 %. ¹H NMR spectra were correlated with X-ray structural information. The stereochemical interconversion barrier at sulfur was calculated as 45.2 kcal mol⁻¹, highlighting the remarkable stereochemical stability of MetO sulfur chirality. Our protocol should open the road to synthesis and study of a wide variety of stereochemically defined MetO-containing proteins and peptides.