New 2-substituted functionalized allyl halides in the synthesis of fragments of amphidinolides B,D, G,H, and L

Simple and efficient asymmetric syntheses of several new allyl bromides as C⁹–C¹⁴ fragments of cytotoxic macrolactones, amphidinolides B, D, G, H, and L, have been developed starting from accessible 1-[(2S)-4,4-dimethoxy-2-methylbutyl]cyclopropyl methanesulfonate prepared through cyclopropanol intermediates. Original synthetic approaches to the C⁷–C¹⁶, C⁷–C¹⁴, and C⁹–C¹⁶ amphidinolide fragments are also described.     

Sulfonium Acids Loaded onto an Unusual Thiotemplate Assembly Line Construct the Cyclopropanol Warhead of a Burkholderia Virulence Factor

Pathogenic bacteria of the Burkholderia pseudomallei group cause severe infectious diseases such as glanders and melioidosis. Malleicyprols were identified as important bacterial virulence factors, yet the biosynthetic origin of their cyclopropanol warhead has remained enigmatic. By a combination of mutational analysis and metabolomics we found that sulfonium acids, dimethylsulfoniumpropionate (DMSP) and gonyol, known as osmolytes and as crucial components in the global organosulfur cycle, are key intermediates en route to the cyclopropanol unit. Functional genetics and in vitro analyses uncover a specialized pathway to DMSP involving a rare prokaryotic SET‐domain methyltransferase for a cryptic methylation, and show that DMSP is loaded onto the NRPS‐PKS hybrid assembly line by an adenylation domain dedicated to zwitterionic starter units. Then, the megasynthase transforms DMSP into gonyol, as demonstrated by heterologous pathway reconstitution in E. coli.     

The mechanism of formation of volatile hydrides by tetrahydroborate(III) derivatization: A mass spectrometric study performed with deuterium labeled reagents

In order to clarify the mechanism of hydride formation, the isotopic composition of arsine, stibine, bismuthine, germane, stannane and hydrogen selenide formed by derivatization with either NaBD₄ (TDB) or NaBH₄ (THB) with inorganic As(III), Sb(III), Bi(III), Ge(IV), Sn(IV) and Se(IV) in aqueous reaction media and under various reaction conditions was determined. Batch hydride generation and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) were employed. The analyte, present in 0.5–5 ml of acid solution (0.1–10 M in HCl or HNO₃ or HClO₄) was derivatized with 1 ml of 0.25–0.5 M TDB / THB in 0.1 M NaOH solution. For TDB derivatization in H₂O reaction media, almost pure BiD₃ and SbD₃ were always obtained for Bi(III) and Sb(III). Nearly pure AsD₃ could be obtained only under some reaction conditions. In general, for As(III), the isotopic composition of the arsines depends strongly on reaction conditions and included all possible AsH_nD_3−n from almost pure AsD₃ to almost pure AsH₃. For Ge(IV) and Sn(IV), the isotopic composition of generated GeH_nD_4−n and SnH_nD_4−n depends on reaction conditions, but pure GeD₄ and SnD₄ could never be obtained. Pure H₂Se was obtained in all cases, independent of reaction conditions. The occurrence of side reactions involving D–H exchange in TBD during its hydrolysis and before the derivatization step, as well as on recently formed hydrides following derivatization was investigated. D–H exchange in TDB during acid hydrolysis appears to occur to a limited extent. Amongst the hydrides, H₂Se undergoes H–D exchange whereas germane and stannane do not exchange at all. Arsine undergoes D–H exchange at elevated acidities (pH < 0) whereas stibine and bismuthine do not exchange significantly during the generation and stripping steps.A reaction model for hydride generation is proposed accounting for primary reactions giving rise to hydride formation through reaction intermediates, as well as side reactions involving D–H exchange and decomposition of reactive hydroboron species, reaction intermediates and final products. Hydrides are formed by direct hydrogen transfer from boron to the analyte atom, most likely through concerted mechanisms taking place via reaction intermediates.     

Cyclopropanol intermediates in the synthesis of the C<Superscript>5</Superscript>–C<Superscript>14</Superscript> fragment of laulimalides

Two novel schemes have been developed for the synthesis of the C⁵–C¹⁴ fragment of the macrocyclic antitumor drug laulimalide and its analogs via transformations of cyclopropanol intermediates.     

The mechanism of the low temperature polymerization reaction in diacetylene crystals

The mechanism of the low temperature polymerization reaction in TSHD diacetylene crystals has been investigated by the transient ESR of the paramagnetic triplet (S = 1) and quintet (S ≈ 2) reaction intermediates. The reaction schemes of the thermal and optical addition and transformation reactions after UV photoinitiation are obtained. The activation energies of the chain propagation reaction and the singlet—triplet and singlet—quintet energy separations of the different dicarbene and diradical intermediates are deduced from the experiments.     

A comparison of the relative energies of isomeric intermediates formed in electrophilic,radical, and nucleophilic aromatic substitution reactions

The relative energetics of isomeric σ-complex intermediates formed in electrophilic, free radical, and nucleophilic attack of Cl, H, and Me on PhCl and PhMe are compared for all positions: o, m, p, and ipso. The results are presented as ΔH, computed by the MINDO/3 method, for the appropriate isodesmic reaction with benzene. For the chlorobenzene intermediates, there is a marked increase in the relative preference for the ipso-position as the reactions change from electrophilic to free radical to nucleophilic. For toluene intermediates, the order of stability-p > o > m > ipso-is seen in all reactions except for one case, free radical methylation. In general, the free radical intermediates show the smallest range of energy differences. Comparison of predictions from these calculations with experimental results (largely partial rate factors and product ratios) shows some qualitative agreement.     

The lack of leaving-atom isotope effects on rotational state distributions in M* + H2 (HD) → MH(ν, N)+H (D) reactions: “Half-collision” classical trajectories on model H-M-H anisotropic potential surfaces

Simple “half-collision” classical trajectories on model potential surfaces show that the lack of leaving-atom isotope effects on initial rotational state distributions P(N) in reactions of the type M + H₂ (HD) → MH (ν, N)+H (D) would result from decomposition of H-M-H (D) intermediates on anisotropic potential surfaces.     

Oxidative Cyclopropanol Opening by Cob(III)alamin

Starting from the cyclopropanol 2 , the isomeric cyclopropanol 4 and the β, γ-unsasturated aldehydes 7 and 8 have been produced by a cobalamin-dependant transformation. In traces, the two acetoxycyclopropanes 3 and 6 , the saturated aldehydes 5 and 11 and the β,γ-unsaturated aldehyde 9 could be detected (cf. Structural Formulae and Table). Starting from 4 the same products in a rather similar distribution were obtained. The isomerization 2?4 as well as the transformations leading to 7,8 , and 9 are shown to be mediated by cob(III)alamin (1(III)) . The results are explained on the basis of rearranging Co-complexes. The migrations might be driven by the electrophilic nature of the central Co(d⁶)-atom.     

Mechanistic studies of the phosphine-catalyzed homodimerization of ketoketenes

The mechanism of PBu₃-catalyzed homodimerization of ketoketenes has been explored and compared with that of the previously reported trialkylphosphite-mediated reactions. NMR studies of the PBu₃-catalyzed reaction implicated the involvement of tetravalent phosphonium intermediates. Phosphonium intermediates in the catalytic cycle were trapped through reaction with trimethylsilyl chloride and 4-chlorobenzaldehyde, and the resulting products were characterized. A method for the stoichiometric generation of phosphonium enolates was developed as a result of these studies. No evidence was obtained for the involvement of pentacovalent phosphorane intermediates in trialkylphosphine-catalyzed ketoketene homodimerization reactions, in contrast with the mechanism of the trialkylphosphite-mediated homodimerization of dimethylketene. An X-ray crystal structure analysis of methylphenylketene dimer showed that it possesses Z-geometry about the exocyclic olefin.     

Unimolecular dissociations of excited C3H6O+: A photoelectron—photoion coincidence study of cyclopropanol and allyl alcohol

The photoelectron spectrum of cyclopropanol has been determined and the first few bands have been assigned to the respective ionization processes. The dissociative photoionization of cyclopropanol and allyl alcohol has been studied by means of HeIα photoelectron—photoion coincidence spectroscopy. The breakdown diagrams of the two corresponding radical cations are practically indistinguishable within the entire energy range investigated (= 5 eV). This implies that extensive isomerizations to a single or to a mixture of common precursor structure(s) precede the dissociative processes. The currently available information on the structure of this reactant and, in particular, the role of other C₃H₆O⁺ isomers is discussed. The kinetic and thermodynamic aspects of the present results are outlined. Although three generations of daughter ions are involved, the relative importance of the different fragmentation pathways could be determined. The RRKM analysis of the coincidence data suggests that the formation of the ethylene cation by loss of a CO molecule from the parent ion hardly competes with the other four primary fragmentation reactions in the sense of the statistical theory of unimolecular reactions.     

Synthesis of novel hydropyrazolopyridine derivatives in solvent-free conditions via benzotriazole methodology

The reaction between 5-[N-(benzotriazol-1-ylmethyl)amino]-3-tert-butyl-1-phenylpyrazole or 5-amino-4-(benzotriazol-1-ylmethyl)-3-tert-butyl-1-phenylpyrazole with some unactivated and electron-rich alkenes has followed heterocyclization reactions to yield hydropyrazolopyridines, under solvent-free conditions, as predicted by benzotriazole methodology in contrast with those results obtained under solution. The reaction mechanism was proposed after fully spectroscopic analysis of final products and intermediates.     

Prediction of NHC-catalyzed chemoselective functionalizations of carbonyl compounds: a general mechanistic map

Generally, N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) complexed with carbonyl compounds would transform into several important active intermediates, i.e., enolates, Breslow intermediates, or acylazolium intermediates, which act as either a nucleophile (Nu) or an electrophile (E) to react with the other E/Nu partner. Hence, the key to predicting the origin of chemoselectivity is to compute the activity (i.e., electrophilic index ω for E and nucleophilic index N for Nu) and stability of the intermediates and products, which are suggested in a general mechanistic map of these reactions. To support this point, we selected and studied different cases of the NHC-catalyzed reactions of carbonyl compounds in the presence of a base and/or an oxidant, in which multiple possible pathways involving acylazolium, enolate, Breslow, and α,β-unsaturated acylazolium intermediates were proposed and a novel index ω + N of the E and Nu partners was employed to exactly predict the energy barrier of the chemoselective step in theory. This work provides a guide for determining the general principle behind organocatalytic reactions with various chemoselectivities, and suggests a general application of the reaction index in predicting the chemoselectivity of the nucleophilic and electrophilic reactions.

A novel index ω + N can be used to predict the chemoselectivity according to the general NHC-catalyzed reaction mechanism.     

Norcholanic acids as substrates for recombinant 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase and progesterone 5β-reductase, enzymes of the 5β-cardenolide biosynthesis

The conversion of 23-nor-5,20(22)E-choladienic acid-3β-ol and other intermediates of the putative norcholanic acid pathway of cardenolide biosynthesis by recombinant 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase from Digitalis lanata in dehydrogenation and reduction reactions was investigated. 23-nor-4,20(22)E-choladienic acid-3-one was found to be a substrate of recombinant progesterone 5β-reductases from D. lanata and Arabidopsis thaliana. The role of various substrates in cardenolide biosynthesis is discussed.     

Preparation of (1R,1′R)-1,1′-(anthracene-9,10-diyl)bis(2,2,2-trifluoroethanamine): a chiral diamine with low basicity

A new chiral diamine with low basicity was synthesized in enantiopure form. (1R,1′R)-1,1′-(Anthracene-9,10-diyl)bis(2,2,2-trifluoroethanamine) was obtained by means of several stereochemically controlled reactions. The structures of the title compound and several intermediates were studied.     

Trifluoromethyl-containing N-acylmethylenequinone imines as novel highly electrophilic agents

The strategy of searching for highly electrophilic agents in a class of chemically inert compounds - methylenequinone imines - was developed and successfully performed. The first representative of such electrophiles - N-acyl-α-methoxycarbonyl-α-trifluoromethyl-p-methylenequinone imine 6 - was synthesized. Its reactions with N-, O- and C-nucleophiles were investigated that gave various derivatives of α-trifluoromethyl-α-amino(oxy) acids as well as ß,ß,ß-trifluoropropionic acids. 3-Chloro-3-trifluoro-1,3-dihydroindol-2-ones were first obtained and their reactions with nucleophiles were studied with 1-aza-3-trifluoroindene-2-ones being formed as intermediates.     

Electrochemical oxidation of multisulfur heterocycles reactions of dithiane cations in acetonitrile

The electrochemical oxidation in acetonitrile of two orthothiooxalates containing 1,3-dithiane rings proceeds via rearrangement reactions of cationic intermediates to form the dication of an endocyclic tetrathioethylene. The dication undergoes a subsequent rearrangement, a possible example of a dyotropic reaction, to complete the electrode reaction. The electrochemical behavior was established by independent synthesis of the product tetrathioethylene, 2,6,8,12-tetrathiabicyclo(5.5.0)dodec-1(7)-ene, its electrochemical behavior, and the electron spin resonance spectra of the radical cations obtained by electrolytic generation from solutions of the orthothiooaxalate and suspected tetrathioethylene oxidation products. When the electrochemical oxidative pathway is compared to the thermal and electron-impact induced fragmentation reactions, distinct differences are noted.     

Further studies on palladium-catalyzed bismetallative cyclization of enynes in the presence of Bu3SnSiMe3

Bismetallative cyclization of enynes with Bu₃SnSiMe₃ catalyzed by Pd(0) complex was realized for the first time, which gives cyclized products containing a vinylsilane moiety and a homoallyltin moiety in good yield. In this cyclization, Pd₂(dba)₃·CHCl₃ or Pd(OH)₂ on charcoal is effective as a Pd(0) catalyst and the addition of a phosphine ligand increased the formation of alkyne bismetallation by-product. On the other hand, it was found that a nucleophilic N-heterocyclic carbene could be utilized as a ligand for this cyclization. The utility of the cyclized products obtained from this cyclization in synthetic organic chemistry have been proven by transformation into cyclopropanol derivatives.     

New asymmetric synthesis of a pheromone component of the shield bug Cantao Parentum

A novel procedure has been developed for the synthesis of (2S,4R,6R,8S)-2,4,8-trimethyl-1,7-dioxaspiro[5.5]undecane, a pheromone component of the shield bug Cantao Parentum, through intermediate cyclopropanol derivatives in the key stages of carbon chain construction and introduction of functional groups.     

Synthesis of 1-amino-2,5-di(2-thienyl)benzenes as potential monomers for the preparation of hybrid polythiophene anionic sensors

A convenient method for the synthesis of 1-amino-2,5-di(2-thienyl)benzenes was proposed. The method involves in situ generation of aryne intermediates from 1-halo-2,5-di-(2-thienyl)benzenes in the presence of strong bases followed by reactions of the arynes with polyfunctional primary and secondary amines. The products obtained in 75?C85% yields are promising monomers for the preparation of polythiophene anionic sensors. Polymerization of dibrominated 1-piperidino-2,5-di(2-thienyl)benzene gave the corresponding poly[(bithiophenediyl)(phenylene)].