Efficient synthesis of nucleoside aryloxy phosphoramidate prodrugs utilizing benzyloxycarbonyl protection

An efficient method for the synthesis of nucleoside phosphoramidates prodrugs (6a-f) has been developed that employs a simple protection/deprotection sequence of the nucleoside with benzyloxycarbonyl (Cbz). The coupling reaction of Cbz-protected derivatives (5a-f) with phenyl-(ethoxy-l-alaninyl)-phosphorochloridate (7), followed by Cbz group removal by hydrogenolysis provided the phenyl phosphoramidate ProTides (6a-f) in excellent overall yields.     

Cyanuryl peptide nucleic acid: synthesis and DNA complexation properties

The synthesis of cyanuryl PNA monomer (CyaPNA) 6 was achieved by direct N-monoalkylation of cyanuric acid with N-(2-Boc-aminoethyl)-N′-(bromoacetyl)glycyl ethyl ester 4. Compound 6 was incorporated as a T-mimic into PNA oligomers and biophysical studies on their triplexes/duplex complexes with complementary DNA oligomers indicated unusual stabilization of PNA:DNA hybrids when the cyanuryl unit was located in the middle of the PNA oligomer.     

Synthesis of functionalized 3-spirocyclopropane-2-indolones from isomerised Baylis-Hillman adducts of isatin

A facile, high yield stereoselective synthesis of functionalized diastereomeric 3-spirocyclopropane-2-indolones (10-17a,b) from the isomerised bromo derivatives of Baylis-Hillman adducts of isatin(2-9a,b) by reductive cyclization with sodium borohydride is reported.     

Novel β-lactam condensed 3-thiaquinolines: an efficient synthesis and structural characterization

Quinoline analog 2-aryl-4H-3,1-benzothiazine derivatives 8-13, obtained by the condensation of o-aminobenzyl chloride 1 with substituted thiobenzamides 2-7, were transformed to azeto[2,1-a][3,1]benzothiazin-1-one derivatives 18-23a,b,c and 24d,e by reaction with the corresponding substituted acetyl chlorides 14-17 in the presence of triethylamine. The structures of the new molecules were determined by NMR spectroscopy and electron ionization (EI) mass spectrometry. The typical EI⁺ mass spectrometric fragmentations of 8-13 and 18-23a,b,c and 24d,e are discussed in detail.     

Synthesis of chiral threefold and sixfold functionalized macrocyclic imidazole peptides

Starting from 4-oxa- or 4-azasubstituted 2-amino-3-oxoesters and (S)-valine, chiral imidazole diamino monocarboxylic acids as well as diamino dicarboxylic acids were prepared in a few synthetic steps. Macrolactamization of the side chain protected imidazole amino acids yields the corresponding 18- and 24-membered ring analogues of the naturally occurring cyclic peptide Westiellamide with various anchoring sites. The threefold functionalized scaffolds 2b-4b and the sixfold functionalized scaffold 5 are versatile central modules for artificial receptors and ligands. Structural investigations of threefold functionalized scaffolds based on oxazole and N-methylimidazole units by DFT modeling are provided.     

A new ferrocene conjugate of a tyrosine PNA monomer: synthesis and electrochemical properties

A new chiral ferrocene-labelled tyrosine PNA monomer 1 has been synthesised in good yield in both racemic and enantiomerically pure forms. It is suitable for insertion in various positions of PNA oligomers, a possibility that has been preliminarily demonstrated by synthesising the dimer 16. Moreover, in view of possible applications to nucleic acid detection, a preliminary voltammetric investigation on the electrochemical activity of monomer 1 and its synthetic precursors has been carried out in DMF. It appears that, despite the bulkiness of the PNA monomer backbone, its insertion on the ferrocene group only moderately lowers the latter’s diffusion coefficients and peak currents, thus affording voltammetric detection limits in the order of 10⁻⁶-10⁻⁷ M.     

Ferrocene derivatives supported on poly(N-vinylpyrrolidin-2-one) (PVP): Synthesis of new water-soluble electrochemically active probes for biomolecules

Carboxy-terminated polyvinylpyrrolidin-2-one (PVP) has been used as a new water-soluble and biocompatible polymeric support for a series of ferrocene labeled amino acid and peptide nucleic acid (PNA) monomer derivatives 4-7. The organometallic polymer-conjugates thus obtained are new and potentially useful as water-soluble electrochemically active probes for biomolecules. In view of such application, their electrochemical activity has been evaluated and has proved very high notwithstanding the complexity and bulkiness of the molecule, affording detection limits down to 10⁻⁸ M in the aqueous medium.     

Optical properties of oligo(2,3-dioxyfunctionalized)naphthalenes

The properties of two series of oligo(2,3-dioxyfunctionalized)naphthalenes which are connected at the 1,4-positions, that is, methoxy derivatives 1-4 and derivatives that possess two pyrene groups on the central scaffolding oxygen functions 5-8, are described. In 1-4, the fluorescence quantum yields increased by about 20-80% as the number of naphthalene units increased. The intramolecular energy transfer quantum yields of 5-8 were around 20% regardless of the number of naphthalene units.     

Diels-Alder reactions of masked o-benzoquinones with acrylonitrile

Regioselective Diels-Alder reactions of masked o-benzoquinones (MOBs) 2a-i derived from the corresponding 2-methoxyphenols 1a-i with acrylonitrile leading to highly functionalized bicyclo[2.2.2]octenone derivatives in high yields are described.     

Synthesis and characterization of polar functional group substituted mono- and bis-(o-carboranyl)-1,3,5-triazine derivatives

Synthesis, structural characterization, and biological activity studies of o-carborane-substituted 1,3,5-triazines (9-12) containing polar functional groups such as methoxyethyl and t-butoxycarbonylmethyl amine units are described. De-methylation of di(methoxyethyl)amine functionalized triazines 9 and 10 resulted in the production of di(hydroxyethyl)amine derivatives 13 and 14. NMR (¹H and ¹³C) and X-ray crystallographic studies confirmed the structures derived from the sequential o-carborane substitution on the 1,3,5-triazine core. Preliminary in vitro studies revealed that compounds 9, 10, 13, and 14, despite their low cytotoxicity, accumulated at high levels in B-16 melanoma cells.     

Syntheses, crystal structures, and electrochemical properties of multi-ferrocenyl resorcinarenes

Tetraaryl and tetraferrocenyl resorcinarenes 1a-1c have been synthesized by the HCl-catalyzed condensation of resorcinol with aromatic aldehydes or ferrocenecarbaldehyde, which were fully alkylated with ethyl α-chloroacetate to give the activated ethyl resorcinarylacetates 2a-2c. Reaction of 2a-2c with hydrated hydrazine yielded the resorcinarene acylhydrazine derivatives 3a-3c, from which the multi-ferrocenyl functional groups were selectively and efficiently introduced on the upper rim, or on the lower rim, or both on the upper and lower rims of resorcinarenes 4a-4c and calixarenes 4d-4f based upon the condensation reactions of acylhydrazones with ferrocenecarboxaldehyde.     

Copper-catalyzed dimerization of chromium Fischer carbene complexes: synthesis of dialkoxytrienes and their Nazarov-type cyclization to 2-alkoxy-2-cyclopentenones

Fischer carbene complexes 1 underwent a clean ligand dimerization reaction yielding functionalized olefins and trienes 4 in the presence of copper (I) catalysts. If treated with trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), trienes 4c, d, f undergo a cyclization process (Nazarov reaction) which furnishes cyclopentenone derivatives 6c, d, 7c, d and 8 in good yields. Finally, the Fischer aminocarbene 9 efficiently cyclodimerizes to the substituted arene 10 in the presence of CuBr.     

Efficient synthesis and applications of 2-substituted azulene derivatives: towards highly functionalized carbo- and heterocyclic molecules

An efficient synthesis of 2-substituted azulene derivatives (3-6) was accomplished from ethyl 2-oxo-2H-cyclohepta[b]furan-3-carboxylate 1 and its derivative 2, which in turn were prepared from readily available tropolone. Compounds 1 and 2 were utilized to construct densely functionalized benz[a]azulene and azulene-furan frameworks (16-25, 29-34, 37, 38).     

Evaluation of two chelators for labelling a PNA monomer with the fac-[Tc(CO)3] moiety

A PNA monomer containing thymine as nucleobase (1) was synthesized, characterized and coupled to the pyrazolyl containing ligand 3,5-Me₂pz(CH₂)₂N((CH₂)₃COOH)(CH₂)₂NHBoc (2) and to a modified cysteine S-(carboxymethyl-pentafluorphenyl)-N-[(trifluor)carbonyl]-l-cysteine methyl ester (3) yielding the bifunctional chelators 6 and 7, respectively. Reactions of 6 and 7 with the Re(I) tricarbonyl starting material [Re(CO)₃(H₂O)₃]Br afforded the complexes fac-[Re(CO)₃(κ³-6)]⁺ (8) and fac-[Re(CO)₃(κ³-7)] (9), respectively. The identity of 8 and 9 has been established based on IR spectroscopy, elemental analysis, ESI-MS spectrometry and HPLC. The multinuclear NMR spectroscopy (¹H, ¹³C, g-COSY, g-HSQC) has also been very informative in the case of complex 8, showing the presence of rotamers in solution. For 9 the NMR spectrum was too complex due to the presence of rotamers and diastereoisomers. The radioactive congeners of complexes 8 and 9, fac-[^99mTc(CO)₃(κ³-6)]⁺ (8a) and fac-[^99mTc(CO)³(κ³-7)] (9a), have been prepared by reacting the precursor fac-[^99mTc(CO)₃(H₂O)₃]⁺ with the corresponding ligands being their identity established by comparing their HPLC chromatograms with the HPLC of the rhenium surrogates.     

Syntheses of two diamine substituted 1,3-distal calix[4]arene-based magnetite nanoparticles for extraction of dichromate, arsenate and uranyl ions

The synthesis of two new calixarene derivatives 4 and 5, functionalized at the lower rim with 4-amino-1-benzylpiperidine to give diamide and diamine derivatives of p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene, is described. They were obtained by the reaction of both the diester derivative of p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene (2) and the dialkyl bromide derivative of p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene (3) with 4-amino-1-benzylpiperidine. The ¹H NMR spectra of calixarene derivatives show that 4 and 5 exist in the cone conformation. Moreover, these diamide and diamine derivatives of p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene (4 and 5) have been immobilized onto [3-(2,3-epoxypropoxy)-propyl]-trimethoxysilane-modified Fe₃O₄ magnetite nanoparticles to obtain calixarene-based magnetic nanoparticles M-DADBP-Calix (6) and M-DABP-Calix (7). The calix[4]arene immobilized materials were characterized by a combination of Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and Thermogravimetric Analyses (TGA) and elemental analysis. Additionally, the studies regarding the removal of As(V)/Cr(VI) ions as well as U(VI) ion from aqueous solutions were also carried out by using these compounds in liquid-liquid/solid-liquid extraction experiments.     

Tubular structures bearing channels in organic crystals composed of adamantane-based macrocycles

Five macrocyclic molecules (1–5) were efficiently synthesized from the dimerization and trimerization of di-substituted adamantane derivatives, which were composed of three different aromatic units and two different linker groups. Three single-crystals were obtained from these macrocyclic molecules, including a set of pseudopolymorphs (3a and 3b) of macrocycle 3 and another macrocycle 5 (5a). Single crystal X-ray analysis revealed that the three monocyclic compounds were rectangular or square in shape with solvent molecules in the cavity. Macrocycle 3 in 3a formed stacks to produce tubular structures with channels that assembled into three-dimensional networks through CH/π interactions.     

Synthesis of functionalized tetracene dicarboxylic imides

For the first time, a synthesis of tetracene dicarboxylic imides was established with 1,2,3,4-tetrahydrotetracene (1) instead of tetracene as the starting material. Mono-bromination of 1 by CuBr₂ followed by a Friedel-Crafts reaction, oxidation, and imidization gave the tetrahydrotetracene carboxylic imides 5a-b. Subsequent oxidative dehydrogenation of 5a-b with DDQ afforded the functional tetracene dicarboxylic imide monobromides 6a-b, which can be further functionalized to provide functional materials such as the ‘donor-acceptor’ type compounds 7a-b.     

Synthetic studies of erythromycin derivatives: 6-O-methylation of (9S)-12,21-anhydro-9-dihydroerythromycin A derivatives

Synthetic studies on methylation of erythromycin derivatives were conducted. Methylation of 6 resulted in the formation of the C-3′ quaternary ammonium salts with a rate faster than 6-O-methylation. In dipolar aprotic solvent and under strong base conditions, 6-O-methylation, C-3′ quaternary ammonium salts formation and 2-C-methylation proceeded simultaneously to yield a mixture of three different products 7, 8 and 9. The quaternary ammonium salts were converted back to the corresponding tertiary amines 2, 10 and starting material 6 by employing sodium 4-pyridinethiolate as a N-demethylation reagent. The 6-O-methylation was eventually achieved in a good yield when a carbobenzyloxy (Cbz) group was utilized to protect the C-3′-dimethylamino group of 4. In this report, we will discuss the details of different reaction courses in the methylation of (9S)-12, 21-anhydro-9-dihydroerythromycin A derivatives.     

Syntheses, optical and electrochemical properties of 4,4′-bis-[2-(3,4-dibutyl-2-thienylethynyl)]biphenyl and its oligomers

New π-conjugated oligomers (1-3) combined of thiophene rings, CC units, and phenylene rings were synthesized. The monomer (1) was synthesized by Sonogashira cross-coupling reaction. Lithiation and oxidation of the monomer led to the formation of dimer (2) and trimer (3). Optical and electrochemical properties of compounds 1-3 were studied. The oligomers with thioacetyl moieties were synthesized for self-assembly.     

Radical cyclization of exo-methylene furanose derivatives: an expedient approach to the synthesis of chiral tricyclic nucleosides and benzannulated oxepine derivatives

Tributyltin radical mediated cyclization of the glucose derived exo-methylene furanose derivatives 5a-c led to the highly functionalized cis-fused bicyclic ethers 6a-c. The product could subsequently be transformed to the optically active tricyclic nucleoside analogue 8 or oxepine derivative 9.