A simple route towards peptide analogues containing substituted (S)- or (R)-tryptophans

We investigated the Lewis acid-promoted Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indole and substituted indoles with dehydroalanine-containing dipeptides R-Xaa-Dha-OR¹. The reaction proceeded with modest to sufficient diastereoselectivity, and yields strongly varied depending on the Lewis acid selected. The substituent R¹ of the ester group revealed some impact on the preferential formation of (S)-Trp or (R)-Trp. We exploited the reaction to prepare different peptides containing substituted tryptophans. To test the efficacy of this method for preparing biologically relevant compounds, we synthesized two unprecedented analogues of endomorphin-1, the endogenous agonist of the μ-opioid receptor, having either (S)- or (R)-2-methyltryptophan in position 3.     

Synthesis of （2R,4R）—2—N—tert—Butyloxycarbonyl Amino—4,5—epoxido—valeric Acid Methyl Ester

The stereoselective synthesis of (2R,4R)-2-N-tert-butyloxycarbonyl amino-4,5-epoxido-valeric acid methyl ester 8,which is the key intermediate for the synthesis of (2′S,2R)-3-trans-nitrocyclopropyl-alanine,was first accomplished.     

Novel synthesis of 2-aminopentanedinitriles from 2-(bromomethyl)aziridines and their transformation into 2-imino-5-methoxypyrrolidines and 5-methoxypyrrolidin-2-ones

1-Arylmethyl-2-(bromomethyl)aziridines were transformed into 2-[N-(arylmethyl)amino]pentanedinitriles upon treatment with an excess of potassium cyanide in DMSO through an unprecedented and peculiar reaction mechanism, involving base-induced ring opening of intermediate 2-(cyanomethyl)aziridines into allylamines, followed by migration of the double bond out of the conjugation towards aldimines via enamine intermediates. The resulting aminopentanedinitriles served as substrates for the synthesis of novel 2-imino-5-methoxypyrrolidines upon treatment with sodium methoxide in methanol, which were either acetylated at the free imino group to afford the more stable N-acetylimino derivatives or hydrolyzed towards the corresponding synthetically relevant 5-methoxypyrrolidin-2-ones.     

A new method for the synthesis of n-(2-aminoethyl)azoles by alkylation of azoles with 2-alkyl-4,5-dihydrooxazoles

Ring opening in 2-alkyl-4,5-dihydrooxazoles by the action of azoles gave intermediate N-(2-azolylethyl)alkanamides, whose hydrolysis afforded N-(2-aminoethyl)azoles. Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 10, pp. 1781–1784, October, 2006.     

Ring opening of 2-(cyanomethyl)aziridines by acid chlorides: synthesis of novel 4-amino-2-butenenitrile derivatives through intermediate aziridinium salts

1-Arylmethyl-2-(cyanomethyl)aziridines were transformed into novel N-arylmethyl-N-(2-chloro-3-cyanopropyl)amides as the major reaction products upon treatment with acid chlorides in CH₂Cl₂ through the ring opening of intermediate aziridinium salts. Subsequently, N-arylmethyl-N-(2-chloro-3-cyanopropyl)amides were converted into stable N-arylmethyl-N-(3-cyano-2-propenyl)amides for the first time by means of a dehydrochlorination mediated by Et₃N in CH₂Cl₂.     

Near‐Infrared Luminescence Sensing of Glutamic Acid,Aspartic Acid,and Their Dipeptides with Tris(β‐diketonato)lanthanide Probes

A series of tris(β‐diketonato)lanthanides with Yb³⁺, Eu³⁺, and Nd³⁺ centers were characterized as luminescent sensing probes specific to glutamic acid, aspartic acid, and their dipeptides, which are important substrates involved in nervous systems, taste receptors, and other biological systems. In particular, tris(6,6,7,7,8,8,8‐heptafluoro‐2,2‐dimethyloctane‐3,5‐dionato)ytterbium(III) exhibited a near‐infrared emission around 980 nm in response to these biological substrates. Near‐infrared‐emissive complexes have several advantages over common luminescent probes; therefore, the proposed lanthanide complexes have potential analytical applications in proteomics, metabolics, food science, astrobiology, and related technologies.     

Straightforward Synthesis of (R,S)-β-Methyleneaspartic Acid, an Inhibitor of Glutamate-Aspartate Transaminase

Summary. A Baylis-Hillman adduct of methyl acrylate and ethyl glyoxalate was converted into the trichloroacetimidate that in the presence of DABCO rearranged to the corresponding trichloroacetamide. Eventually, hydrolysis under acidic conditions, led to the hydrochloride of racemic β-methyleneaspartic acid.     

Synthesis of 2-oxo-2,3,5,6-tetrahydro-5-thioxoimidazo[1,2-c]quinazolines by one-pot cyclization of α-aminocarboxylic esters with 2-(isothiocyanato)benzonitrile (ITCB)

The cyclization of 2-(isothiocyanato)benzonitrile with α-aminocarboxylic esters and acids afforded a variety of 2-oxo-2,3,5,6-tetrahydro-5-thioxo-imidazo[1,2-c]quinazolines with very good regioselectivity.     

Synthesis of the first pseudo-phosphonopeptides derived from (ferrocenyl)aminomethanephosphonous acids

The first example of the condensation of (ferrocene)-N-benzhydrylamino-methanephosphonous acid (1) with α-amino acids 2a-d and several model dipeptides 4a-d and the tripeptide dl-alanyl-dl-leucinyl-glycine (4e) in the presence of DCC resulted in pseudo-phosphono-dipeptides 3a-d and pseudo-phosphono-oligopeptides 5a-d. The probable chiral assistance of the incoming amino acid or peptide in the formation of the new chiral center on phosphorus was also a feature of this method.     

Production of H,D(2s, 2p) by electron impact (0–2000 eV) on simple hydrogen containing molecules

Absolute emission cross sections of Ly-α (H, D (2p → 1s)) radiation have been determined for 0–2000 eV electrons incident on H₂, HD, D₂, HCl, H₂O, NH₃ and CH₄. By means of the application of electric quenching the excitation cross sections of H, D (2s) could be obtained from the increase of the resulting Ly-α radiation for these molecules. It was found that only for H₂, HD and D₂ fragments in the H (2s) state are formed.     

A Strong Positive Allosteric Effect in the Molecular Recognition of Dicarboxylic Acids by a Cerium(IV) Bis[tetrakis(4-pyridyl)porphyrinate] Double Decker

With increasing number of bound dicarboxylic acid molecules , the binding of further molecules by the title compound becomes more favorable (a 1:4 complex is depicted schematically on the right). The association constant for binding of the first guest molecule is small, since the increase in Gibbs free energy due to binding is outweighed by the energy loss asssociated with the suppression of rotation of the porphyrin rings. Once rotation has been suppressed, further guest molecules can be more effectively bound (positive allosteric effect).     

The determination of the stability constants of mixed ligand complexes of adenine and amino acids with Ni(II) by potentiometric titration method

A potentiometric titration technique has been used to determine the stability constants for the various complexes of Ni(II) with adenine (A) as primary ligand and selected amino acids (L) as secondary ligands. Ternary complexes of amino acids are formed in a stepwise mechanism, whereby (A) binds to Ni(II), followed by interaction with ligand (L), whereas thiol-containing ligands form ternary complexes through a simultaneous mechanism. The formation constants of the complexes were determined at 25 °C and ionic strength 0.1 M NaNO₃. The relative stabilities of the ternary complexes are compared with those of the corresponding binary complexes in terms of Δlog K values. The concentration distribution of the complexes are evaluated.     

Enantioselective solubilization of DL-amino acids in organic solvents containing N-alkyl-L-proline derivatives and copper(II) ions

Enantioselective solubilization of DL-amino acids has been observed in various organic solvents containing copper(II) complexes of N-alkyl-L-proline, and the enantioselectivity appears to be caused by the formation of diastereomeric mixed-ligand complexes and differences in their stability.     

Studies on the aza-Claisen rearrangement of 4,5-dihydroxylated allylic trichloroacetimidates: the stereoselective synthesis of (2R,3S)- and (2S,3S)-2-amino-3,4-dihydroxybutyric acids

Two new synthetic approaches, involving substrate directed aza-Claisen rearrangements and aza-Claisen rearrangements mediated by chiral Pd(II) catalysts, have been developed for the stereoselective synthesis of (2R,3S)-2-amino-3,4-dihydroxybutyric acid, a dihydroxylated α-amino acid from the edible mushroom, Lyophyllum ulmarium and its (2S,3S)-unnatural diastereomer.     

4-Formylazetidin-2-ones, synthon for the synthesis of (2R,3S) and (2S,3R)-3-amino-2-hydroxydecanoic acid (AHDA)

An efficient synthesis of 3-amino-2-hydroxydecanoic acid (AHDA), a nonproteinogenic amino acid, using enantiopure 3-benzyloxy-4-formylazetidin-2-one as a building block is described. Both the enantiomers of AHDA have been synthesized from the corresponding enantiomer of 3-benzyloxy-4-formylazetidin-2-one in good yield and optical purity.     

High-performance liquid chromatography ofα-amino acids on a polystyrene resin with fixed ligands of the type (R)-N′, N′-dibenzyl-1,2-propanediamine

Summary A cross-linked polystyrene resin with fixed ligands of the type (R)-N, N-dibenzyl-1,2-propanediamine in the form of a copper(II) complex displays high enantio-selectivity in ligand-exchange chromatography of amino acids. A microbore column (100 mm×1 mm i.d.) packed with angular particles of dp=5–10 m generated up to 3500 theoretical plates, enabling a complete resolution of a mixture of three racemic amino acids into six components under isocratic conditions.12th publication in the series dealing with the ligand-exchange chromatography of racemates. Previous publications: ref. [1].     

Synthesis of protected （2S,4R）-2-amino-4-methyldecanoic acid,a proposed component of culicinins

The protected （2S,4R）-2-amino-4-methyldecanoic acid, a proposed component of culicinins has been synthesized over 10 steps and in total 28% yields using Wittig reaction and Schollkopf amino acid synthesis as key steps.     

N-磷酰化肽酯及小肽与溶菌酶相互作用的ESI-MS研究

用ESI-MS研究了一系列结构具有可比性的N-磷酰化肽酯及小肽和溶菌酶的非共价相互作用, 比较了磷酰化肽酯及小肽分子中的不同基团对相互作用的影响. 结果表明—OH对其与溶菌酶的相互作用有较大贡献; 芳香环由于位阻原因, 对相互作用有促进和阻碍双重效应; 当—OH与芳香环相连时会发生协同效应, 可使相互作用显著增强. 磷酰化肽酯及小肽的体积大小、空间位阻对相互作用亦有显著影响. 磷酰化二肽中氨基酸残基的构型、顺序、碳链长短的变化(增加1～2个C)对其与蛋白溶菌酶之间的相互作用在质谱中没有表现出影响. 分子结构较为伸展、分子柔顺性好、空间位阻较小的磷酰化小肽更容易使蛋白在溶液中的构象趋于收缩, 而构象较为收缩的蛋白分子更易结合空间位阻较小的磷酰化小肽分子.     

Chiral discrimination in biliverdin (S)-amino acids,II: Structural variations of the amino acid functional groups

The Biliverdin-(S)-amino acid derivatives2–21 have been synthesized, and are subject to a thorough c. d. and u. v.-vis. electronic absorption analysis in the bilatriene chromophoric region. It is shown that the extent of chiral discrimination of the bilatriene helices is particularly sensitive towards structural variations of the amino acids bound to the propionic side chains. Thus, a pronounced decrease of chiral induction occurs if hydrogen bonding between one of the two essential coordination sites of the amino acid entity and the bilatriene backbone is disturbed. Accordingly, derivatives of (S)-amino acidt-butyl esters (3,5,7,16 and17) andN-substituted (S)-amino acids (8–10, 20 and21) generally display weak c. d. spectra. If additional polar groups are present in bis(amino acid) derivatives mutual interferences of the adjacent side chains must be taken into account. The attenuations of -values observed for the bis(serine) and bis(aspartic acid) compounds14 and15 thus are mainly due to intramolecular interchain interactions. The results provide evidence in support of the proposed mechanism of chiral discrimination in biliverdin amino acids.Dedicated to Prof. Dr.Kurt L. Komarek on the occasion of his 60th birthday.