Operationally convenient, efficient asymmetric synthesis of enantiomerically pure 4-aminoglutamic acids via methylene dimerization of chiral glycine equivalents with dichloromethane

This paper presents a practical and efficient asymmetric synthesis of enantiomerically pure 4-aminoglutamic acids using a quite unusual methylene dimerization of chiral nucleophilic glycine equivalents with dichloromethane under phase-transfer catalysis (PTC) conditions. From a synthetic standpoint, the reported procedure is highly operationally convenient and scalable as it does not require any chromatographic purification of the intermediate products.     

Application of modular nucleophilic glycine equivalents for truly practical asymmetric synthesis of β-substituted pyroglutamic acids

A new series of achiral glycine equivalents have been evaluated with respect to their synthetic utility for the production of β-substituted pyroglutamic acid derivatives. Among them, the piperidine-derived complex was found to be a superior glycine derivative for the Michael additions with various (R)-N-(E-enoyl)-4-phenyl-1,3-oxazolidin-2-ones representing a general and practical synthesis of sterically constrained β-substituted pyroglutamic acids. In particular, application of complex allowed for the first time preparation of the corresponding isopropyl derivatives thus increasing the synthetic efficiency and expanding generality these Michael addition reactions.     

Highly enantioselective monoalkylation of p-chlorobenzaldehyde imine of glycine tert-butyl ester under mild phase-transfer conditions

The selective monoalkylation of glycine tert-butyl ester aldimine Schiff base 3 has been realized in high chemical yield with excellent enantioselectivity under mild liquid–liquid phase-transfer conditions by the use of binaphthyl-derived chiral quaternary ammonium bromides 7 and 8 as catalysts. This achievement demonstrates that 3 can be used as a cost-effective substrate for the preparation of optically active α-alkyl-α-amino acid derivatives by chiral phase-transfer catalysis.     

Efficient, practical synthesis of symmetrically α,α-disubstituted α-amino acids

Ni(II)-complex derived from glycine Schiff base with 2-[N-(α-picolyl)amino]benzophenone (PABP) was found to be an ideal equivalent of nucleophilic glycine in the reactions with various alkyl halides affording an efficient, generalized and practically useful method for preparing symmetrically α,α-disubstituted α-amino acids.     

Deuterium isotope effect on 13C chemical shifts of tetrabutylammonium salts of Schiff bases amino acids

Deuterium isotope effects on 13C chemical shift of tetrabutylammonium salts of Schiff bases, derivatives of amino acids (glycine, L-alanine, L-phenylalanine, L-valine, L-leucine, L-isoleucine and L-methionine) and various ortho-hydroxyaldehydes in CDCl3 have been measured. The results have shown that the tetrabutylammonium salts of the Schiff bases amino acids, being derivatives of 2-hydroxynaphthaldehyde and 3,5-dibromosalicylaldehyde, exist in the NH-form, while in the derivatives of salicylaldehyde and 5-bromosalicylaldehyde a proton transfer takes place. The interactions between COO- and NH groups stabilize the proton-transferred form through a bifurcated intramolecular hydrogen bond.     

含氨基酸席夫碱的5-氟尿嘧啶衍生物的合成及其抗肿瘤活性

以N 1-(2-四氢呋喃烷基)-5-氟尿嘧啶为原料, 与1,4-二溴丁烷反应, 得到N¹-(2-四氢呋喃烷基)-N³-(4-溴丁基)-5-氟尿嘧啶(2), 最后与氨基酸席夫碱的钾盐缩合, 得到13个新的目标化合物3. 其结构经IR, ¹H NMR, MS和元素分析确证. 初步的体外抗肿瘤试验结果表明, 目标化合物具有一定的抗肿瘤活性.     

The preparation and alkylation of a butanedione-derived chiral glycine equivalent and its use for the synthesis of α-amino acids and α,α-disubstituted amino acids

A benzyloxycarbonyl protected glycine equivalent 2 has been prepared in enantiopure form and has been used in the synthesis of both α-substituted amino acids and α,α-disubstituted amino acids. The process involved deprotonation to form the corresponding enolates which underwent stereoselective alkylation with various electrophiles and upon hydrolysis gave the corresponding amino acid derivatives as enantiomerically pure products.     

α-methyl amino acids by catalytic phase-transfer alkylations

The α-methyl amino acids, α-methyl p-chlorophenylalanine, α-methyl p-tyrosine, α-methyl m-tyrosine and α-methyl DOPA have been prepared in good yields from amino ester hydrochlorides. The key step in the method is the catalytic phase-transfer alkylation of Schiff base derivatives of mono alkyl amino acids.     

氨基酸席夫碱的合成及性质研究

合成了5种氨基酸席夫碱Sal-Gly(甘氨酸席夫碱)、Sal-Glu(谷氨酸席夫碱)、Sal-Met(甲硫氨酸席夫碱)、Sal-Tyr(酪氨酸席夫碱)、Sal-Arg(精氨酸席夫碱)及其金属锌离子配合物共10种化合物.用元素分析、核磁共振、红外光谱、紫外-可见光谱等手段对其组成的结构进行表征.以Sal-Tyr-Zn为主体,咪唑(1),1-甲基-咪唑(2),2-乙基-4-甲基咪唑(3),吡唑(4),4-碘苯胺(5),DABCO(1,4-重氮双环[2,2,2]辛烷)(6),邻苯二胺(7)和1,2-环己二胺(8)为客体,进行配位相互作用研究.选取大肠杆菌作为抑菌菌种,研究了氨基酸席夫碱的抑菌能力.结果表明,氨基酸席夫碱配体及金属锌配合物对大肠杆菌均有抑菌活性,配体的抗菌活性随氨基酸残基的增大而减小.金属锌配合物的抑菌活性大于其所对应的氨基酸席夫碱配体的抑菌活性,活性最大的则为Sal-Arg-Zn.     

Synthesis of New Phase-Transfer Catalysts and Their Application in Asymmetric Alkylation

Despite phase transfer catalysis (PTC) is an important and useful method in organic synthesis, asymmetric synthesis using chiral phase-transfer catalyst has not been well documented and limited number of chiral phase-transfer catalyst have been developed^[1].In 1989,O'Donnell published his pioneering work in the asymmetric synthesis of α-amino acids by enantioselective alkylation of a prochiral protected glycine derivative using chiral phase-transfer catalyst^[2]. Since then, several groups reported their improvements on enantioselectivity and applicability on this useful synthetic reaction^[3,4]. However, almost all of the chiral phase-transfer catalysts reported so far are the derivatives of cinchona^[5]. In this presentation, we wish to describe the design and synthesis of a new type of chiral phase-transfer catalyst based on the camphor and its application in asymmetric alkylation of tert-bntyl glycinate-benzophenone Schiff base.     

Phase-transfer enantioselective monoalkylation of prochiral nickel(ii) complexes catalyzed by 3,3′-bis[hydroxy(diphenyl)methyl]-1,1′-binaphthyl-2,23′-diol (BIMBOL) as a route to α-amino acids

An achiral nickel complex with a Schiff base derived from glycine was alkylated with alkyl halides under conditions of asymmetric phase-transfer catalysis. The chiral tetraol (R)-BIMBOL was employed as a catalyst. The enantiomeric purity of the alkylation products was up to 88%. Subsequent decomposition of the complexes afforded the corresponding a-amino acids.     

Stoichiometric and catalytic methods of asymmetric synthesis of nonproteinogenic α-and β-amino acids via transition metal coordination compounds

The complexes of glycine, -alanine, and -alanine with (S)-[N-(N-benzylprolyl)amino] benzophenone formed by Ni(II) and Cu(II) ions and Schiff bases enter into different nucleophilic and electrophilic reactions with the formation of diastereoisomeric complexes which decompose into proteinogenic and nonproteinogenic L-amino acids with a high chemical yield and elevated optical purity (70–90%). Optically pure amino acids can be obtained from diastereoisomerically pure complexes after the complexes are separated by recrystallization of the mixture of diastereoisomeric complexes formed. A new type of interphase catalysts of C-alkylation of achiral Schiff bases was proposed. The catalysts are positively charged Ni(II) and Cu(II) complexes of Schiff bases of chiral diamines. In some cases, these complexes have a higher activity and capacity to execute asymmetric alkylation than traditional chiral interphase catalysts based on cinchonidine.Based on materials in the section report by Yu. N. Belokon' to the 7th European Symposium on Organic Chemistry, ESOC-7.A. N. Nesmeyanov Institute of Organoelemental Compounds, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117813 Moscow. Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk, Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 5, pp. 1106–1127, May, 1992.     

Amino acid catalyzed neogenesis of carbohydrates: a plausible ancient transformation

Hexose sugars play a fundamental role in vital biochemical processes and their biosynthesis is achieved through enzyme-catalyzed pathways. Herein we disclose the ability of amino acids to catalyze the asymmetric neogenesis of carbohydrates by sequential cross-aldol reactions. The amino acids mediate the asymmetric de novo synthesis of natural L- and D-hexoses and their analogues with excellent stereoselectivity in organic solvents. In some cases, the four new stereocenters are assembled with almost absolute stereocontrol. The unique feature of these results is that, when an amino acid is employed as the catalyst, a single reaction sequence can convert a protected glycol aldehyde into a hexose in one step. For example, proline and its derivatives catalyze the asymmetric neogenesis of allose with >99 % ee in one chemical manipulation. Furthermore, all amino acids tested catalyzed the asymmetric formation of natural sugars under prebiotic conditions, with alanine being the smallest catalyst. The inherent simplicity of this catalytic process suggests that a catalytic prebiotic "gluconeogenesis" may occur, in which amino acids transfer their stereochemical information to sugars. In addition, the amino acid catalyzed stereoselective sequential cross-aldol reactions were performed as a two-step procedure with different aldehydes as acceptors and nucleophiles. The employment of two different amino acids as catalysts for the iterative direct aldol reactions enabled the asymmetric synthesis of deoxysugars with >99 % ee. In addition, the direct amino acid catalyzed C(2)+C(2)+C(2) methodology is a new entry for the short, highly enantioselective de novo synthesis of carbohydrate derivatives, isotope-labeled sugars, and polyketide natural products. The one-pot asymmetric de novo syntheses of deoxy and polyketide carbohydrates involved a novel dynamic kinetic asymmetric transformation (DYKAT) mediated by an amino acid.     

Direct asymmetric intermolecular aldol reactions catalyzed by amino acids and small peptides

In nature there are at least nineteen different acyclic amino acids that act as the building blocks of polypeptides and proteins with different functions. Here we report that alpha-amino acids, beta-amino acids, and chiral amines containing primary amine functions catalyze direct asymmetric intermolecular aldol reactions with high enantioselectivities. Moreover, the amino acids can be combined into highly modular natural and unusual small peptides that also catalyze direct asymmetric intermolecular aldol reactions with high stereoselectivities, to furnish the corresponding aldol products with up to >99 % ee. Simple amino acids and small peptides can thus catalyze asymmetric aldol reactions with stereoselectivities matching those of natural enzymes that have evolved over billions of years. A small amount of water accelerates the asymmetric aldol reactions catalyzed by amino acids and small peptides, and also increases their stereoselectivities. Notably, small peptides and amino acid tetrazoles were able to catalyze direct asymmetric aldol reactions with high enantioselectivities in water, while the parent amino acids, in stark contrast, furnished nearly racemic products. These results suggest that the prebiotic oligomerization of amino acids to peptides may plausibly have been a link in the evolution of the homochirality of sugars. The mechanism and stereochemistry of the reactions are also discussed.     

Adding a Functional Handle to Nature′s Building Blocks: The Asymmetric Synthesis of β‐Hydroxy‐α‐Amino Acids

β‐Hydroxy‐α‐amino acids are not only used by synthetic chemists but are also found in natural products, many of which show anti‐microbial or anti‐cancer properties. Over the past 30 years, chemists have searched for many asymmetric routes to these useful building blocks. Initial attempts to synthesize these compounds utilized chiral auxiliaries and the reactions of glycine equivalents with aldehydes to form two stereocenters in one step. Other methods with the formation of specific intermediates or that were aimed at a specific amino acid have also been investigated. Asymmetric hydrogenation by dynamic kinetic resolution has emerged as a high‐yielding method for the synthesis of an array of modified amino acids with good stereoselectivity. More recently, amino‐acid functionalization and multicomponent reactions have increased the atom economy and simplified many long and difficult routes. In this Focus Review, many of the elegant syntheses of these compounds are explored. The applications of β‐hydroxy‐α‐amino acids in natural‐product synthesis are also mentioned.     

Bispalladacycle‐Catalyzed Michael Addition of In Situ Formed Azlactones to Enones

The development and further evolution of the first catalytic asymmetric conjugate additions of azlactones as activated amino acid derivatives to enones is described. Whereas the first‐generation approach started from isolated azlactones, in the second‐generation approach the azlactones could be generated in situ starting from racemic N‐benzoylated amino acids. The third evolution stage could make use of racemic unprotected α‐amino acids to directly form highly enantioenriched and diastereomerically pure masked quaternary amino acid products bearing an additional tertiary stereocenter. The step‐economic transformations were accomplished by cooperative activation by using a robust planar chiral bis‐Pd catalyst, a Brønsted acid (HOAc or BzOH; Ac=acetyl, Bz=benzoyl), and a Brønsted base (NaOAc). In particular the second‐ and third‐generation approaches provide a rapid and divergent access to biologically interesting unnatural quaternary amino acid derivatives from inexpensive bulk chemicals. In that way highly enantioenriched acyclic α‐amino acids, α‐alkyl proline, and α‐alkyl pyroglutamic acid derivatives could be prepared in diastereomerically pure form. In addition, a unique way is presented to prepare diastereomerically pure bicyclic dipeptides in just two steps from unprotected tertiary α‐amino acids.     

Efficient synthesis of serically constrained smmetrically alpha,alpha-disubstituted alpha-amino acids under operationally convenient conditions

Homologation of the nucleophilic glycine equivalent Ni-Gly-PABP [Ni(II) complex of glycine Schiff base with 2-[N-(alpha-picolyl)amino]benzophenone (PABP)] 2 via alkyl halide alkylations and Michael addition reactions was systematically studied as a general method for preparing symmetrically alpha,alpha-disubstituted alpha-amino acids (sym-alpha,alpha-AA). The dialkylation reactions are conducted under operationally convenient conditions without recourse to inert atmosphere, dried solvents, and low temperatures, thus enjoying key advantages of the experimental simplicity and attractive cost structure. The method has been shown to be particularly successful for the dialkylation of complex 2 with activated and nonactivated alkyl halides, including propargyl derivatives, affording a generalized and practical access to the corresponding sym-alpha,alpha-AA. This study has also shown some limitation of the method, as it cannot be extended to alpha- or beta-branched alkyl halides or Michael acceptors to be used for the dialkylation of glycine equivalent 2. High chemical yields of the dialkylated products, combined with the simplicity of the experimental procedure, render this method worth immediate use for multigram scale preparation of the sym-alpha,alpha-AA.     

Which Stereoinductor Is Better for Asymmetric Functionalization of α-Amino Acids in a Nickel(II) Coordination Environment? Experimental and DFT Considerations

The results of extended comparative investigation of nickel(II) Schiff base complexes (containing various auxiliary chiral moieties) commonly used as a methodological platform for the asymmetric synthesis of tailor-made α-amino acids are provided. The following issues are addressed: 1) redox activity (determining the possibility for electrochemically induced reactions); 2) quantitative estimation of the reactivity of deprotonated complexes towards electrophiles; and 3) quantum-chemical estimation of noncovalent interactions in the metal coordination environment (which shed light on the origin of the stereochemical outcome observed for different stereoinductors). Possible mechanisms that determine the relationship between the stereochemical configuration of a molecule and its electronic structure are discussed. The DFT-calculated HOMO–LUMO energies and localization, as well as relative energies for the (S)- and (R)-alanine derivatives, that determine the stereoinduction efficiency in thermodynamically controlled reactions in nickel(II) coordination are provided. The computational data are supported by experimental results on the monobenzylation of glycine derivatives.     

Soluble polymer supported synthesis of alpha-amino acid derivatives

A Schiff base activated glycine supported on a soluble polymer (poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)) was readily alkylated with a wide variety of electrophiles in the presence of a carbonate base in acetonitrile. The presence of the polymer provided a phase-transfer catalysis environment which accelerated the reaction. Effects of various carbonate bases and leaving groups have been also studied. Completion of the PEG-supported reaction was obtained without using a large excess of reagents or an extra phase-transfer catalyst, even in the case of unreactive or hindered electrophiles. After cleavage from the polymer, alpha-amino esters are obtained in good yields.     

The enantioselective synthesis of alpha-amino acid derivatives via organoboranes

Optically active (S)-alpha-amino acids are prepared in 54-95% ee (12 cases) by reaction of the Schiff base acetate of glycine tert-butyl ester with B-alkyl-9-BBN derivatives in the presence of the Cinchona alkaloid, cinchonidine, and base. The enantiomeric (R)-alpha-amino acids are available in 59-92% ee (3 cases) by using cinchonine as the chiral control element.